Facts Matter with Roman Balmakov

An ordinary man in Spain tried hacking his own vacuum robot and accidentally broke into 7,000 of them—giving him live video access inside strangers’ homes. This story exposes the bigger risk of filling our homes with smart devices that constantly listen, monitor, and watch us.

CYBER THREAT ALERT: Mike Gallagher sounds the alarm on CCP hackers ALREADY INSIDE America’s critical infrastructure. “This is the cyberspace equivalent of placing bombs on American bridges, water treatment facilities, and power plants,” said the former Congressman at a House Select CCP Committee back in 2024.

The Strait of Hormuz crisis is leading to “COVID-style” lockdowns as nations across Europe and Asia ration fuel. Countries like Thailand, the Philippines, and Denmark are already telling people to stay home, work from home, and cut back on driving. https://ntd.nyc/energy_crisis

Millions of Pokemon Go players catching digital monsters were used as “human meat puppets” to map out the world. Now that data is powering delivery robots with near-perfect precision. The company putting the location data to work is Coco Robotics, which owns and operates roughly a thousand suitcase-sized robots across U.S. cities.

Scientists dumped a MASSIVE amount of red chemicals into the ocean that they think will fight climate change. This trial took place last August, 50 miles off the coast of Massachusetts, and involved pouring 65,000 liters of red-dyed sodium hydroxide into the ocean.

HISTORIC SHIFT: For the first time in three decades, U.S. imports from Taiwan topped those from China. This is not some insignificant blip. China’s manufacturing is massive. They hold a monopoly on rare earths. Yet the little island just beat out the entire Chinese mainland.

A young Florida mom of two was killed when her airbag exploded, sending shrapnel flying through the cabin. How can you make sure you’re not at risk? If you drive a used car, sign up at the NHTSA website to get email alerts if your car is ever recalled.

The FBI has warned that Chinese hackers are targeting U.S. water systems. The good news is that you can take action now to protect your family. As a first step, you can add a high-quality water filter to your home, either on or under the sink. In a poisoning scenario, it could make all the difference.

The U.S. is at war with Iran, and behind it a bigger question: What happens to Trump’s Pacific strategy now? We get into the deeper implications and what this conflict is showing about China’s military might—and whether it’s as strong as we thought. https://ntd.nyc/prtr5n

Luckily, this cyberattack on a hydroelectric dam in New York was stopped just in time. If not, it could have flooded a nearby town. Even though this attack was back in 2013, likely by Iranian-backed hackers, what does America’s infrastructure look like as a target today?