Byron Tau

What does the effort to assert federal control over elections mean for the upcoming midterms? 🗓️ Join us Oct. 27 at 4 pm ET to hear what we’ve learned from our reporting. RSVP:

A look into the kind of pressure tactics DHS is using against travelers to get them to open their devices at border crossings: officials lied to a man, saying they wanted to search his phone for "kiddie porn" when they were investigating him for "terrorism," docs show www.404media.co/dhs-said-the...

The federal government is lying to you. And we have the receipts. projects.propublica.org/american-cit...

If you want to see the hollowness of the modern internet in action, behold this book club scammer's AI agent pitching me using poorly scraped or stolen data thinking that I'm "Christopher Byron," who himself is an "author" writing AI generated ebook slop on Amazon. Great use of tokens, everyone.

Really important @josephcox.bsky.social story that adds a huge amount of detail about the domestic intelligence program the U.S. Border Patrol is running, where it secretly singles out U.S. citizens and then refers them to local police officers for a pretextual stop if they appear suspicious.

Unusual request: if you were an Android user at the Substack party at the Renwick tonight and would be willing to share your device’s network logs (anonymously is fine!), please reach out on Signal: byrontau.01. I can walk you through how.

After Trump's FCC commissioner fixated on a report he didn't like, a Bay Area radio station demoted a well-liked anchor and dialed back on political programming, staff said. Reporters also said they were dissuaded from pursuing political or controversial topics. My story: apnews.com/article/trum...

NEW AP INVESTIGATION: With license plate readers and local law enforcement partnerships, Border Patrol is monitoring American drivers and detaining those exhibiting ‘suspicious’ travel patterns in the U.S. interior. w/ @garanceburke.bsky.social. apnews.com/article/immi...

New: The FBI filed a subpoena trying to unmask the person or people behind archive.is / archive.today, which have been running anonymously for 13 yrs. Site was widely used by GamerGate, and then to bypass paywalls but has become kind of core archiving infrastructure www.404media.co/fbi-tries-to...

AP INVESTIGATION: For decades, the US government allowed and even helped US firms sell tech used for surveillance in China — enacting a loophole-ridden export control regime that failed to accomplish its big goals. By @garanceburke.bsky.social, @dakekang.bsky.social & me. apnews.com/article/chin...

Recording of recent talk with @byrontau.bsky.social on "Means of Control: How the Hidden Alliance of Tech and Government is Creating a New American Surveillance State" (2024). Discussion bridges investigative journalism, critical media studies, + surveillance studies! www.youtube.com/watch?v=iT3s...

Just a reminder that this event with @byrontau.bsky.social is coming up soon: Wednesday, October 15 at 3pm GMT

Pleased to announce this talk with @byrontau.bsky.social on his recent book "Means of Control: How the Hidden Alliance of Tech and Government is Creating a New American Surveillance State." You can register here: www.eventbrite.co.uk/e/means-of-c...

A blockbuster AP investigation from @dakekang.bsky.social and @yaelwrites.com finds that US tech companies designed and built China’s repressive surveillance state trapping tens of thousands of ordinary Chinese citizens in a digital cage. apnews.com/article/chin...

Tremendous reporting from Joel Schectman and Aruna Viswanatha in the @wsj.com on how Pentagon pranks, coverups and in some cases deliberate disinformation fed to American citizens fueled interest in UFOs. www.wsj.com/politics/nat...

Also if you're interested, I wrote a book about this: www.penguinrandomhouse.com/books/706321...

Hm, sounds uncomfortably familiar. Makes me think of @byrontau.bsky.social's Means of Control.

New intelligence community-run portal will be a "one stop shop" for commercially available information. This includes information on your car, your phone, your Bluetooth headphones, your purchases -- sold by corporations and bought by governments. theintercept.com/2025/05/22/i...

Trump ordered an investigation into the Democrat's online fundraising machine ActBlue, yet his own campaign finance records show similar issues with unverified donors and possible illegal foreign money. apnews.com/article/trum...

I very much recommend Means of Control by @byrontau.bsky.social. Well researched and eye opening. Renewed a sense of urgency in me regarding #privacy matters. www.byrontau.com/means-of-con...

For the past few weeks, a wire has snaked out of the open window of the GSA administrator's office and onto the roof, where it connects to a Starlink terminal A look at the very Muskian takeover of the chokepoint of federal tech, real estate and contracts. apnews.com/article/doge...

AP’s exclusion from the White House over its refusal to use the term Gulf of America "has been contrary to the First Amendment" and U.S. District Court Judge Trevor McFadden (Trump appointee) "enjoins the Government from continuing down that unlawful path" storage.courtlistener.com/recap/gov.us...

21 DOGE staffers resign rather than help use their technical expertise to “dismantle critical public services," according to a resignation letter obtained by the AP. Musk has largely tried to keep technical talent at DOGE, mostly laying off designers & product managers. apnews.com/article/doge...

I am currently writing about DOGE and what it is doing with its vast access to federal computer systems and databases. If you are a current or former federal employee or contractor with insight, I am best reached on Signal at byrontau.01.

New from me: DeepSeek has code in its user login system that could send user data to a sanctioned Chinese state-owned telecom that in 2019 was barred from operating in the United States, according to Feroot Security. apnews.com/article/deep...

The number of crews abandoned at sea by ship owners is growing, leaving more sailors stuck at sea or abandoned in port. By @helenwieffering.bsky.social apnews.com/article/inte...

Do you work at Meta? How is it going? Would love to hear from you -- Signal (646)378-8843 or bortutay@ap.org if you have anything to share, anonymity protected as always.

A mysterious meeting with Syrian president is at the center of spy chief’s nomination fight by @byrontau.bsky.social. apnews.com/article/tuls...

For federal employees (or anyone) who wants to speak to a reporter about what's unfolding about their agencies, the Associated Press investigative team can be reached here: Investigative@ap.org or www.ap.org/tips/ I am byrontau.01 on Signal.

A reminder: Contact AP’s global investigative team at Investigative@ap.org or www.ap.org/tips/

Things appear to be going well inside federal agencies.

I’ve focused on security for at-risk civil society groups for over a decade now (🙀), including human rights defenders, lawyers, and journalists. I’m available for collaboration, consulting, and presenting, so please get in touch if you’d like to work together!

A former tech CEO is on a crusade to get the record of his arrest removed from the internet — suing a journalist for $25 million for truthfully reporting that the domestic violence arrest had occurred. sf.gazetteer.co/a-former-tec...

@byrontau.bsky.social's first @apnews.com byline! apnews.com/article/trum...

This was such a good read, I knew about metadata but this terrified me. And then angered me that nothing has been done to protect American citizens.

"Healthy drinking is social drinking, and the decline of alcohol seems related to the fact that Americans now spend less time in face-to-face socializing than any period in modern history" www.theatlantic.com/ideas/archiv...