Anna Rowe: How being catfished sparked an online safety movement

Thomas is joined by Anna Rowe – romance fraud survivor and founder of Catch the Catfish – for a powerful conversation about deception, trauma, and recovery. From emotional grooming to AI-powered scams, they explore how digital trust is being exploited – and what we can do to protect ourselves and others.

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Tom Sefton-Collins – Inside the online influence battlefield

Tom Sefton-Collins, Founder of GhostShift and former GCHQ Head of Operations, joins Joining the Dots to explore the rise of online influence as a core component of modern threat activity. From state-backed campaigns to individual content creators operating at scale, Tom explains how the information environment has become a complex, unregulated space shaping trust, behaviour, and real-world outcomes. A detailed look at influence, threat convergence, and the future of defending against harm online.

Rachael Herbert – Exposing the UK high street’s money laundering problem

Money laundering is not just a problem for financial centres - it is increasingly visible on local high streets across the UK. In this episode of Joining the Dots, Rachael Herbert, Director of the National Economic Crime Centre, explains how illicit finance, organised crime and hidden harms such as modern slavery are intersecting in everyday environments. Through the lens of Operation Machinize, Rachael outlines how law enforcement, regulators and the private sector are working together to disrupt criminal activity, seize illicit assets and generate actionable intelligence. She also reflects on the policy and legislative tools that support this work, the value of trusted public–private partnerships, and the need for intelligence-led, threat-based approaches rather than box-ticking compliance.

Jamie Bartlett – How to Talk to AI, Influence and The Missing Cryptoqueen

Journalist and author Jamie Bartlett joins Joining the Dots to unpack how emerging technologies reshape society long before institutions are ready for them. From the rise of crypto scams and online radical movements to today’s explosion of generative AI, Jamie explains why disruption rarely comes from invention alone but from widespread adoption and creative misuse. He shares lessons from his latest work on how to talk to AI, including why language, tone and challenge are central to using large language models responsibly.

Tony Sales – My life in fraud and why prevention keeps failing

Former fraudster‑turned‑educator Tony Sales joins Joining the Dots to unpack the human realities behind modern economic crime. From social engineering and cyber enabled fraud to youth vulnerability and emerging AI threats, Tony explains why understanding criminal mindset is essential to preventing harm - and why data remains one of the most valuable commodities criminals trade in.

Matt Horne – Operation Venetic: how encrypted crime was finally exposed

Former NCA Gold Commander Matt Horne joins Joining the Dots to explore Operation Venetic – the landmark investigation that exposed organised crime’s use of encrypted communications at scale. Matt shares what it took to turn a flood of anonymous EncroChat data into actionable intelligence, manage risk to life, and build robust cases. A compelling discussion on covert operations, technology, and the future of intelligenceled harm prevention.

Will Lyne & Matt Horne – Cybercrime, national security, and the fight for resilience

Thomas speaks with Will Lyne (former NCA) and Matt Horne (Clue/TechUK) about the future of cybercrime and national security. From ransomware to AI, they discuss the blurred lines between crime and state threats, and why collaboration and resilience are key to staying ahead.