Scamfluencers

Wondery

You never really know someone…especially online. In today’s world, the power of influence can be the quickest path to money and fame, and it often ends in ruin. These are the stories of the world’s most insidious Scamfluencers. And we are their prey. On Wondery’s new weekly series, join co-hosts Scaachi Koul and Sarah Hagi as they unpack epic stories of deception from the worlds of social media, fashion, finance, health, and wellness. These influencers claim to be everything from charismatic healers to trusted financial insiders to experts in dating. They cast spells over millions. Why do we believe them, and how does our culture allow them to thrive? From Black Swan Murder to a fake social media influencer to an audacious Hollywood Ponzi schemer, each season will take the listener along the twists and turns, the impact on victims, and what’s left when the facade falls away.Listen to Scamfluencers on the Wondery App or wherever you get your podcasts. You can listen early and ad-free on Wondery+. Join Wondery+ in the Wondery App or on Apple Podcasts. Start your free trial by visiting wondery.com/links/scamfluencers/ now.

  • 45 minutes 5 seconds
    Richard Bandler: The Self-Help Scammer

    Fueled by cocaine and daddy issues, Richard Bandler revolutionized self-help by developing an approach called Neuro-Linguistic Programming — which is essentially mental manipulation. Richard got his start in the 1970s, and his books and controversial workshops gained thousands of followers and made him rich. But his addictions isolated him from his friends and family, and led him to get caught up in a gruesome crime. Richard may not have practiced what he taught, but NLP has inspired many, including some truly toxic and criminal movements.


    Listen to Scamfluencers on the Wondery App or wherever you get your podcasts. You can listen early and ad-free on Wondery+. Join Wondery+ in the Wondery App, Apple Podcasts or Spotify. Start your free trial by visiting wondery.com/links/scamfluencers/ now.

    See Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info.

    14 October 2024, 7:01 am
  • 5 minutes 45 seconds
    Listen Now: Kill List

    In the depths of the dark net, tech journalist Carl Miller makes a disturbing discovery: a secret Kill List targeting hundreds of innocent people on a murder for hire website. When the police decide not to investigate, Carl is thrown into a race against time to warn those in danger and uncover the truth about the people who want them dead. From Wondery and Novel, comes a true story about obsession, control and the price of life and death.


    Listen to Kill List on the Wondery App or wherever you get your podcasts: Wondery.fm/Kill_List 


    You can listen to Kill List and more Exhibit C true crime shows like Morbid early and ad-free right now by joining Wondery+. Check out Exhibit C in the Wondery App for all your true crime listening.

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    8 October 2024, 8:00 am
  • 44 minutes 30 seconds
    ENCORE: The Bitcoin Bamboozle

    The ultimate cringey crypto couple has fessed up to their crimes and are now testifying against other con artists. We’re looking back on how Ilya Lichtenstein and Heather “Razzlekahn” Morgan hacked a major cryptocurrency exchange in the summer of 2016 and ran off with billions of dollars worth of Bitcoin. The stolen crypto sat unspent for months, and the crime seemed all but impossible to trace… until two surprisingly savvy federal agents began investigating on the black market. As they followed the money, it led them to our wacky, and tacky, international cyber-criminals. 


    Listen to Scamfluencers on the Wondery App or wherever you get your podcasts. You can listen early and ad-free on Wondery+. Join Wondery+ in the Wondery App, Apple Podcasts or Spotify. Start your free trial by visiting wondery.com/links/scamfluencers/ now.

    See Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info.

    7 October 2024, 7:01 am
  • 44 minutes 9 seconds
    ENCORE: Long Island Liars

    The Lottery Lawyer’s luck has run out: Jason Kurland is now behind bars. We revisit how he went from a Long Island real estate lawyer to eventually representing major lottery winners. He claimed to help new millionaires and billionaires manage their wealth. But once these unsuspecting winners gave Jason access to their bank accounts, their sudden good fortune started to look like a curse. And Jason and his buddies felt like they hit the jackpot.


    Listen to Scamfluencers on the Wondery App or wherever you get your podcasts. You can listen early and ad-free on Wondery+. Join Wondery+ in the Wondery App, Apple Podcasts or Spotify. Start your free trial by visiting wondery.com/links/scamfluencers/ now.

    See Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info.

    30 September 2024, 7:01 am
  • 7 minutes 37 seconds
    Listen Now - Criminal Attorney

    Paul Bergrin is a hotshot criminal defense attorney in Newark, New Jersey. Seemingly unstoppable and with unorthodox methods, he’s built a reputation for getting his clients off the hook. But as Paul's legend grows, so do the suspicions swirling around him. 

    When FBI Agent Shawn Brokos starts investigating a major drug ring, she makes a shocking discovery: the gang's most powerful player is none other than Newark’s star attorney. Has the ex-federal prosecutor crossed the line and started committing crimes himself?

    From Wondery, comes a new series about a lawyer who breaks all the rules, the FBI agent determined to take him down at all costs, and the people caught in the middle who paid the ultimate price.


    Listen to Criminal Attorney on the Wondery App or wherever you get your podcasts. You can listen early and ad-free on Wondery+. Join Wondery+ in the Wondery App or on Apple podcasts. Start your free trial by visiting Wondery.fm/Criminal_Attorney now.

    See Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info.

    24 September 2024, 8:00 am
  • 40 minutes 31 seconds
    Elon Musk: Too Big to Scam

    When Elon Musk bid to buy Twitter for $44 billion, he made headlines for the mess that followed — including flip flopping on the deal and immediately firing most of the site’s employees. In this special episode of Scamfluencers, Scaachi Koul talks with New York Times reporters Kate Conger and Ryan Mac about their new book Character Limit: How Elon Musk Destroyed Twitter. They explain how Musk leveraged his Silicon Valley clout to take over, and tank, everyone’s favorite hellsite and we’re left wondering: is Elon Musk the ultimate Scamfluencer?


    Listen to Scamfluencers on the Wondery App or wherever you get your podcasts. You can listen early and ad-free on Wondery+. Join Wondery+ in the Wondery App, Apple Podcasts or Spotify. Start your free trial by visiting wondery.com/links/scamfluencers/ now.

    See Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info.

    23 September 2024, 7:01 am
  • 40 minutes
    Jack Abramoff: Bringing Down the House Part 2

    Jack Abramoff has schemed his way to the top of right-wing politics, skimming off the top of every lobbying deal he makes. But when burned clients expose his scam to Congress, Jack is forced to answer to elected officials who have actually stuck to their convictions. He still considers himself a hero, even as his circle of DC power players gets taken down. And even a stint behind bars can’t stop Jack’s impulsive need to lie, cheat, and steal, even as he tries to stage a comeback tour.


    Listen to Scamfluencers on the Wondery App or wherever you get your podcasts. You can listen early and ad-free on Wondery+. Join Wondery+ in the Wondery App, Apple Podcasts or Spotify. Start your free trial by visiting wondery.com/links/scamfluencers/ now.


    See Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info.

    16 September 2024, 7:01 am
  • 43 minutes 6 seconds
    Jack Abramoff: Bringing Down the House Part 1

    Jack Abramoff got his start bending the rules while he was still in elementary school… and never stopped. At first, he works to advance right-wing causes he believes in. Jack’s principles start to fade once he finds his true calling: using pay-to-play politics to amass wealth and power for himself and his friends. Years before calls to drain the swamp, Jack Abramoff was The Swamp Thing.

    See Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info.

    9 September 2024, 7:01 am
  • 45 minutes 55 seconds
    Kingdom Con: The Vermont Ski Scam

    Ski-obsessed Bill Stenger has big dreams for his sleepy Vermont mountain town. He pairs with a wealthy businessman to tap into an obscure government program that funnels millions from foreign investors looking to fast-track their visa applications. Bill and Ariel turn their ski resort into a year-round tourist attraction and create thousands of jobs… but millions of dollars are unaccounted for. When troubled investors band together, they discover their money is hiding in a mountain of fraud. 

    See Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info.

    2 September 2024, 7:01 am
  • 48 minutes 17 seconds
    Abby Lee Miller: Scam Like Nobody's Watching

    Before she became the most infamous dance teacher in America, Abby Lee Miller ran a struggling dance studio in Pittsburgh. Shortly after declaring bankruptcy, she gets the break of a lifetime: she’s cast as the lead in Dance Moms. She becomes a reality TV star overnight, and even as she leads young dancers to stardom in front of millions of viewers — fighting their moms every step of the way — she schemes to keep her newfound wealth a secret from the courts. And when curtain finally falls on her fraud, Abby insists on an encore.


    Listen to Scamfluencers on the Wondery App or wherever you get your podcasts. You can listen early and ad-free on Wondery+. Join Wondery+ in the Wondery App, Apple Podcasts or Spotify. Start your free trial by visiting wondery.com/links/scamfluencers/ now.

    See Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info.

    26 August 2024, 7:01 am
  • 40 minutes 45 seconds
    ENCORE: Brooklyn's Bling Bishop

    Now that Lamor Whitehead has been sent to prison, we return to his Biblical fall from grace. In 2006, Lamor gets arrested while wearing a mink coat, prompting the New York post to dub him a “high roller.” But after a stint in prison, Lamor reinvents himself as a man of God. He starts his own for-profit ministry called Leaders of Tomorrow and befriends some very influential people, including New York politician Eric Adams. But Lamor never lets go of his flashy lifestyle. After he gets robbed while wearing expensive jewelry, his community begins to wonder: How does the pastor of a tiny church afford all of this luxury? 


    Listen to Scamfluencers on the Wondery App or wherever you get your podcasts. You can listen early and ad-free on Wondery+. Join Wondery+ in the Wondery App, Apple Podcasts or Spotify. Start your free trial by visiting wondery.com/links/scamfluencers/ now.

    See Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info.

    19 August 2024, 7:01 am
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