tech
Spotify removed 57,000 fake podcast episodes selling illegal drugs after congressional pressure
Spotify removed 57,000 fake podcast episodes tied to illegal drug sales after a US Senate probe, but acted only after media pressure exposed the problem.
TL;DR
- Spotify removed over 57,000 fake podcast episodes and banned 3,500 accounts for promoting illegal drugs.
- The episodes used AI-generated audio to direct listeners to websites selling drugs and cryptocurrency on unregulated marketplaces.
- The majority of removed episodes had zero or very few plays, suggesting they were used for SEO rather than listenable content.
- Spotify's action came after a US Senate investigation and media reports exposed the scale of the problem.
- Spotify stated it is not well-positioned to identify AI-created podcast content, lacking specific moderation tools unlike those for AI music.
- The company did not report the removed drug-promotion content to law enforcement, despite direct links to sites later seized by the DEA.
- Similar AI-generated drug-spam podcasts have been found on other platforms, but Spotify disclosed the largest removal figures.
- Spotify has not announced new automated detection tools for podcasts, citing ongoing system improvements without a timeline.