Listen to DevNews S8E4: A Surge In Hacks Against Russia, Privacy Concerns With Mental Health Apps, & more!
Tags: news, podcast, devnews
Published: 2022-05-05 22:58:54

---
title: Listen to DevNews S8E4: A Surge In Hacks Against Russia, Privacy Concerns With Mental Health Apps, & more!
published: true
description: Listen to S8E4 of the DevNews pod wherever you get your podcasts.
tags: news, podcast, devnews
series: DevNews Season 8
cover_image: https://dev-to-uploads.s3.amazonaws.com/uploads/articles/bpiohmexv5lwwlt41cdd.gif
---

Russia faces an irony when it comes to a surge in hacking against the country. We talk about that and more on this week's episode of DevNews...


{% podcast https://dev.to/devnews/s8e4-a-surge-in-hacks-against-russia-privacy-concerns-with-mental-health-apps-and-legos-big-move-into-the-digital-space %}

_As a refresher, DevNews is the news show for developers by developers. Each season, our hosts cover the latest in the world of tech, and speak with diverse guests from a variety of backgrounds to dig deep into meaty topics such as security, the pros and cons of outsourcing your authentication, and the latest bugs and hacks._

In this episode, we talk about Lego expanding its online ambitions and its plans to triple the number of software engineers on staff. Then we’ll speak with Joseph Menn, author of the book, Cult of the Dead Cow, and technology reporter at The Washington Post, about a piece he wrote titled, “Hacking Russia was off-limits. The Ukraine war made it a free-for-all.” Finally, we’ll speak with Jen Caltrider, who leads Mozilla’s Privacy Not Included guide, about their research which found that the vast majority of mental health and prayer apps are severely lacking in privacy protections.

**Hosts:** 
- **@saronyitbarek** is the founder of Disco, founder of [CodeNewbie](https://community.codenewbie.org) host of the [CodeNewbie Podcast](https://dev.to/codenewbie), and co-host of the [base.cs podcast](https://dev.to/basecspodcast).
- **@joshpuetz** is the Principal Software Engineer at [Forem](https://forem.com) — the open source community software that powers DEV, CodeNewbie and a growing number of other online communities.


**Guests:** 
- **[Joseph Menn](http://twitter.com/@josephmenn)** — is a technology reporter at The Washington Post specializing in hacking, privacy and surveillance. He joined The Post in 2022 after two decades covering technology for Reuters, the Financial Times and the Los Angeles Times. His books include “Cult of the Dead Cow: How the Original Hacking Supergroup Might Just Save the World” (2019) and “Fatal System Error: The Hunt for the New Crime Lords who are Bringing Down the Internet” (2010).

- **[Jen Caltrider](http://twitter.com/@caltrider)** — started her career as a journalist at CNN. From there she moved into digital media, and is recognized as a pioneer in the use of digital media strategies, messaging, and communications. She has over a decade of experience in advocacy, digital media, content strategy, campaign design, video and audio production, and storytelling.

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_You can [follow DevNews](dev.to/devnews) to get episode notifications and listen right in your feed_ _— or subscribe on your platform of choice! Plus, if you leave us a review, we'll send you a free pack of thank-you stickers. Details [here](https://airtable.com/shr8oKAIMZgdYnBxx)._ 

## **Quick Listening Links**
- [Apple Podcasts](https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/s8-e4-a-surge-in-hacks-against-russia-privacy/id1525581923?i=1000559681991)
- [Spotify](https://open.spotify.com/episode/3aTa8oxD9952HK9AtMsjmy)
- [Google](https://podcasts.google.com/feed/aHR0cDovL2ZlZWRzLmNvZGVuZXdiaWUub3JnL2Rldm5ld3NfcG9kY2FzdC54bWw/episode/aHR0cHM6Ly9kZXZwb2RzLmRldi9wb2RjYXN0cy9kZXZuZXdzLzYw?sa=X&ved=0CAQQkfYCahcKEwjAneiTuMn3AhUAAAAAHQAAAAAQCg)
- [Stitcher](https://www.stitcher.com/show/devnews/episode/s8-e4-a-surge-in-hacks-against-russia-privacy-concerns-with-mental-health-apps-and-legos-big-move-into-the-digital-space-202929931)
- [Listen Notes](https://www.listennotes.com/podcasts/devnews/s8e4-a-surge-in-hacks-aXdqD3kSvgF/)
- [TuneIn](https://tunein.com/podcasts/Technology-Podcasts/DevNews-p1352512/?topicId=171869427)
- [RSS Feed](http://feeds.codenewbie.org/devnews_podcast.xml)
- [DEV Pods website](https://devpods.herokuapp.com/podcasts/devnews/episodes/262)

#### _Acknowledgements_ 
Thank you to our Season 8 Sponsors:
 
- [Avalanche](https://www.avax.network/developers)
- The [DevDiscuss Podcast](https://devpods.dev/podcasts/devdiscuss)
- The [CodeNewbie Podcast](https://www.codenewbie.org/podcast)

_Plus, thank you to @graciegregory for providing editorial support for this post_ 

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I hope you enjoy this episode of DevNews 📰 More episodes coming up!