Strg_F

Imagine going to the toilet and then every peeping Tom on the internet can watch it. Because someone secretly filmed you and posted a video of it online - on a porn site. In Germany, peeping Tom videos carry a prison sentence of up to two years, but the perpetrators feel safe online - because their victims don't know that they are victims. STRG_F reporter Patrizia Schlosser penetrates the network of these people undercover, chats repeatedly for over a year with men who exchange information via spy cams and celebrate each other for their actions. The research goal: identify and confront the perpetrators.

Likes and hearts, fans and followers: They are the currency on social media platforms. If you have a lot, you are someone. But the applause can be bought. One of the companies that offers likes for money is based in Germany. Your likes come from real people with real profiles - this makes the purchased likes almost unrecognizable for the social network algorithms. They click for politicians, for influencers and would-be influencers, for companies and campaigns. Who buys? Who sells? STRG_F reporter Svea Eckert plunged into the hustle and bustle of the paid likes business: an insight into the like factory.

Be it FIFA, League of Legends or Counter Strike: E-sports are a mass phenomenon. And: A lot of money is made with e-sports. But is e-sports also real sport? And if so, should e-sports in clubs be recognized as non-profit and therefore receive tax advantages? There has been a heated debate about this question for around two years, since the topic was included in the coalition agreement. A current legal opinion attempts to bring clarity to the discussion. The result: E-sport is not a sport and currently has no chance of being recognized as a non-profit organization. This was met with a shitstorm online. Even our reporter Niko cannot understand the result. Spicy: The lawyer who wrote it happens to be the great-uncle of our reporter Tobias. Together with Niko, Tobias sets out to understand the confusion of the e-sports debate.

Fur is a pretty persistent trend, and a controversial one: Do we really have to kill animals to sew their fur onto hats and jackets? Anyone who buys real fur rarely thinks about where it comes from and under what conditions it is produced. STRG_F reporter Robert accompanied animal rights activists on an undercover operation in Poland. They want to make public how furry animals like foxes have to suffer for our fashion.

A few months ago, STRG_F reporter Gunnar uploaded a photo of himself to a photo portal. He didn't think much of it. But the response was great. A lot has happened in the meantime. Gunnar's face still appears on numerous websites and posters. He goes on a search again, researches who is using his photo and visits the people who use him for advertising.

Our reporter Han is faced with another big eating challenge. All you can sugar in one day. Han eats his way through the confectionery fair in Cologne with Gunnar for a day. He tries his way through the sweet world of sugar and tests how his body reacts to the sweetness. Whether chocolate, fruit gum donuts or jelly beans with chili - no sweet is safe from Han. What does this do to his blood sugar level and how does his body react?

"Mein Kampf" by Adolf Hitler, anti-Semitic children's books, Nazi propaganda: sent home by post with just a few clicks. The mail order company “Der Rogue” sells incitement to hatred on the Internet. The authorities have been investigating for four years without success. Why can't they stop the sale? And who is behind the mail order business? CTRL_F reporters Timo and Sebastian go looking for a suspect - and they find another.

The USA accuses Assange of, among other things, espionage through his revelations. He faces up to 175 years in prison. Does the USA want to finish Assange with its actions? Or is Assange a criminal who may rightly spend the rest of his life behind bars? In this CTRL_F episode you will find out everything you need to know about the complex Wikileaks case in order to form your own opinion.

The Duel Around the World, The Best Show in the World, Joko and Klaas against ProSieben and Late Night Berlin. Joko and Klaas are the kings of entertainment. Their shows and films have all the ingredients for good entertainment: action, humor and a pinch of irony. When it comes to their films, they are not above anything and cross unknown genre boundaries. But have they also crossed another line? What is fake and what is real in Joko and Klaas' films? Gunnar, Han and super intern Emil find traces of fakeness in YouTube comments. Then her search for clues begins with Joko and Klaas and their production company Florida TV.

Apparently there is a secret plan: The German population should be replaced by mass immigration. The interesting thing: This conspiracy theory is shared by many from the right-wing camp - whether sympathizers, right-wing populists, neo-Nazis or terrorists. In the report, STRG_F reporter Carla and STRG_F reporter Tobi meet people who are convinced that there is a systematic or even controlled population exchange. But is that even plausible? And how dangerous is this theory?

Dear people, a disclaimer first: Our report on food waste was created before Corona. The current situation naturally raises many exciting questions about the issue of handling food, which the film does not depict. But perhaps now is the time to think about whether we are doing everything right with the food in our lives. We can always have everything. And always waste everything: each of us throws away around 75 kg of food; each year. CTRL_F Reporter Lucie is also a spendthrift, but she wants to change something. She wants to know why we throw away so much, how we are tempted to throw it away and how we can perhaps save this food after all.

He was the first Corona patient in Berlin. At 22 years old, he does not belong to the risk group and yet he has been in quarantine in the hospital for over 20 days. And his roommates are now infected and living in isolation. Gunnar went to Berlin and met her. The conditions have now changed. We now have much stricter requirements, so this report could not be filmed again today.

Almost everyone is sure: We have to take Corona seriously. But as the virus spreads, some people are still arguing about whether it could really be that dangerous, that deadly. Another virus is spreading particularly online: the virus of dangerous theses, but also conspiracy theories. Who are the spreaders and what can we believe? For STRG_F reporters Carla and Désirée, Covid-19 means staying inside because they are high-risk patients. Research from quarantine.

Hope and horror can be close together: in the middle of the war, filmmaker Waad has her first daughter. She filmed her life in besieged Aleppo over five years. She turns it into a touching film diary for her daughter Sama. Waad's camera documents unbearable scenes from inside the Syrian war that have never been seen before. How do you survive when you are at your most vulnerable? For STRG_F, reporter Pia talks to the filmmaker about this time and today. The end of the war is now taking place in Idlib. Before the eyes of the world. Millions of people are still on the run, 60 percent of them children. They live in cramped and unsanitary conditions. Activist and filmmaker Waad appeals to everyone who is now sitting at home and looking after their own children: “Don’t forget these people, they need our help, even in times of Corona.”

Zhana works on the streets - even in times of Corona. She needs the money, has no home, no papers. And many men seek her out like before. Only the circumstances are tougher. Because love hotels are closed, business is shifting to dark building entrances, parks and public toilets. So Zhana continues to disappear into the dark and no one will know if something happens to her. Güner and Jesco shot with Zhana for STRG_F. Prostitution despite Corona – how is it going?

New York and Bergamo – the corona virus is raging particularly violently here. By mid-March, Italy had already suffered more deaths than China and became the European epicenter of the crisis. The military had to help transport bodies away. In the USA and especially New York the situation seems to have gotten completely out of control. More than 20,000 deaths, including over 10,000 deaths in New York state alone. How is the fight against the virus in a state of emergency? And why are these two regions in particular so badly affected? Emely Riemer and Han Park set out to find people who would report from where the virus outbreak was worst.

This time is hard for all of us, but it hits some particularly hard: Kathrin recorded a video diary for STRG_F. She has ADHD, suffers from chronic depression and panic attacks. For many people with previous mental illnesses, the state of emergency is an enormous challenge. Which routines suddenly break? What burdens, what helps? Kathrin speaks openly with reporter Désirée about all of this and the question: How can we all get through this crisis well?

Schools in Germany were closed for six weeks because of Corona. Now students who are about to graduate are slowly being allowed to go to school again. For many, however, it still means learning at home instead of everyday school life. But what consequences does this have for the students? And what does that mean for equal opportunities? While the siblings Ben and Maya, for example, receive new laptops from their parents for their school work, Haifa doesn't even have WiFi at home. The STRG_F reporters Tobias Zwior and Jonas Schreijäg wanted to know: How unfair is homeschooling?

We live in a world created by men for men. We have been collecting data for centuries in order to optimize all areas of life - for example in industry, business and medicine. But most often these are only men's data. Women are virtually invisible in the data sets. This means: All products such as smartphones, cars and even medicines are optimized for men. STRG_F reporter Simone asked herself what consequences this has for women.

The cash registers are ringing at Amazon despite Corona. But some employees are afraid of becoming infected with Corona. In an Amazon shipping warehouse south of Hamburg, several dozen employees have fallen ill with Covid-19. Why are there no official figures? And how could it come to this? The STRG_F reporters Sebastian Friedrich and Simone Horst investigate the case and want to know: How does Amazon treat its employees in the crisis?

A former NATO bunker was apparently the center of global cybercrime for years: fake documents, stolen data, hacker attacks and the second largest darknet drug market in the world. Thousands of crimes on the Internet were apparently committed via the servers of the so-called “cyber bunker” in tranquil Traben-Trarbach. A team of reporters from STRG_F and SPIEGEL viewed thousands of documents and interviewed investigators and perpetrators. What kind of guys are these suspected cyber gangsters? What did it look like in the “cyber bunker”? And how did the investigation into one of the biggest internet crimes in German history go?

In 2014, my NDR colleague Oda Lambrecht told me that there are doctors in Germany who consider homosexuality to be an illness. They are supposed to offer “therapies” with which homosexual people can supposedly become heterosexual. I could hardly believe it at the time. In this CTRL_F episode we'll show you our research into, among other things, how I was supposed to be turned into a heterosexual man using demon exorcism, psychotherapy and homeopathy.

Some chat portals apparently use fake profiles behind which paid employees hide: men, women, old, young. They are required to keep their unsuspecting counterpart in line: to spark flirtations and to continue conversations with open questions. Because every message costs the user on the other side money. How exactly does the fake flirt business work? STRG_F reporter Nadia Kailouli applied undercover as a chat writer and looked behind the scenes of two portals.

They are fast, loud and dangerous: motorcycles! At least that's what many residents in busy motorcycle areas think and have been complaining about the noise for years. The Federal Council has just discussed a whole package of measures, from harsher penalties to driving bans on weekends and public holidays. STRG_F reporter Gunnar drove to one of the most popular motorcycle hotspots in the Black Forest. There he meets speeders, residents and the police during a check. What is motorcycling all about? And should it be restricted?

Many billions are implemented every year on the art market. And the most expensive works are almost always created by men. This applies to both historical and contemporary art. Why are works of art by women worth less? The STRG_F reporters Simone Horst and Kira Gantner spoke to gallery owners, collectors and of course artists, dug through many studies and filled Excel tables to find the answers.

Lou Nesbit announced her departure from the porn industry on Instagram – tearfully. She says she was traumatized by what she experienced and didn't actually want any of this. That was the start of our research. We spend weeks on the phone with porn actors and producers to get an idea of the business. It quickly becomes clear: Lou has come across one of the toughest producers in Germany - and not by chance. The porn actor Don John brought her to the production. Today she regrets ever meeting him - and she's not alone. How hard is the porn business really? Is Lou an isolated case or is there a system behind it? We have looked into abysses for you that we would rather not have looked into.

STRG_F reporter Svea Eckert is totally connected. She has had her “Alexa”, an Amazon “Echo” smart speaker, for two years. Through self-experimentation, she finds out that “Alexa” and also “Hey Siri” from Apple sometimes listen to her when they aren’t supposed to. Because smart speakers make mistakes. They understand voice commands that are not. For example, when the television is on, but also during intimate conversations with doctors, during sex, when there is an argument. How often do these mistakes happen? And who is listening while the data is being evaluated? Together with STRG_F colleague Henning Wirtz, Svea sets off on the trail of her own data.

Chanel, Prada, Dior - there are thousands of perfumes. But regardless of price range, questionable ingredients can be found in most fragrances. Désirée and Gunnar enter the world of perfumes and want to know what's in their scents and what ends up in the body. To do this, they do the test: They send their urine to the laboratory. Which ingredients are detected and what can they do to our body?

The right-wing extremist Stephan Ernst has been on trial since June: he is said to have murdered the Kassel district president Walter Lübcke in 2019. STRG_F has been leaked the interrogation videos made by the police and is showing excerpts for the first time. A film about the path of a right-wing extremist to becoming a suspected terrorist.

They were secretly filmed while they were showering or using the toilet. Reporter Patrizia meets with women to whom something like this has happened. This is the first time you've spoken about it publicly. What did the women experience? And: what can we do against this form of sexual violence?

At the beginning of this year we discovered that a man had secretly filmed women in dixiklos at the "Monis Rache" festival in Mecklenburg-Western Pomerania - and posted these videos on a porn site. Now we're discovering more peeping Tom incidents at festivals. Patrizia explores the question: What needs to change so that we can use showers and toilets at festivals again without fear?

Drugs via swipe? Dealers advertise their goods on Instagram. We analyzed the platform and carried out spot checks. The result: packages of weed, lean, Xanax and ecstasy by post or courier. How can that be? And how is it possible that cocaine or crystal meth are even being offered? Instagram refers to a clear ban on drug trafficking on the platform. You also remove extensive content. But what was the result for us?

The crew of Sea-Watch 3 rescued 53 people from the Mediterranean in the summer of 2019. The story went around the world: no port wanted to take them. An odyssey of waiting, negotiating and fear began. After almost three weeks on the ship, Captain Carola Rackete sailed into the port of Lampedusa without permission. The people were able to get off board. Soon they were distributed throughout Europe. Eleven came to Germany. What happened to them? CTRL_F reporter Nadia visited four of them.

From “Give me Tilidin” to “Tilidin gone” – in German rap, medication as a drug is apparently the hottest thing. Capital Bra, Samra, Bonez MC, Gzuz, AK Ausserkontrolle – almost all of the big German rappers discuss the drug in their songs. Some young people also seem to celebrate it. “You want to be closer to the rappers by doing the same things to yourself as they do,” says a young person in the STRG_F interview. It would be “deceived” if the German rappers didn’t really “shoot” Tilidin. STRG_F Reporter Mirco investigates the question: What does German rap have to do with it? The figures from the statutory health insurance companies are striking: prescriptions for 15 to 20 year olds have increased almost 30-fold in the last two years. Many people also get the drug via the dark web. There is even the possibility of ordering supposedly fake recipes on the Darknet. We tried it.

Deutschrap-Star Capital Bra erzählt so ausführlich wie noch nie über seine Tilidin-Sucht. Im exklusiven Interview sagt der Rapper: "Du kannst nicht ohne, weil es dich dann fickt. Du sitzt dann da, wie ein vercrackter Junkie." Im der vergangenen STRG_F Reportage ging es um das Schmerzmedikament Tilidin, das auch als Droge missbraucht wird. Seit 2017 sind die Tilidin-Verschreibungen bei 15- bis 20-Jährigen um das 30-fache gestiegen. Im gleichen Zeitraum haben viele bekannte Rapper Songs darüber veröffentlicht. Auch wenn das kein eindeutiger Beweis für einen Zusammenhang ist - Capital Bra will trotzdem etwas klarstellen. Was er erlebt hat, wie sein Entzug lief und wie er in Zukunft damit umgehen will, seht ihr im Interview.

Until his arrest at the end of 2019, Julian Assange had sought protection in the Ecuadorian embassy for seven years - and during this time he found a partner and started a family. Love and family had to remain secret because the supposed safe room was constantly monitored - officially by the security company UC Global and on behalf of Ecuador. But a number of clues and traces lead to the USA.

Dealers advertise drugs on Instagram. But not everyone who offers weed or Xanax on the platform actually has the goods there. In addition to the real dealers, we found entire networks on Instagram who want to make money solely from stolen photos and videos. A business model that even has its own tools. How do you recognize the fraudsters? How do their tricks work? And why did we even fall for it?

The STRG_F reporters Jonas Schreijäg and Sulaiman Tadmory investigated and found: The alleged torture boss received amazing preferential treatment from the German authorities. And this despite the fact that at the same time millions of Syrian war refugees were seeking humanitarian protection.

Donkey Edward doesn't want to go any further. He is hungry. But hardly any grass grows in the plateaus. The journey with the donkey will be an exercise in patience for reporter Samuel. He was traveling around the world when he came across a photo of a nomad. Their tribe is said to live in the furthest corner of Afghanistan, in the plateau of the Wakhan Corridor. Isolated and isolated from modernity. Not even a road leads into these mountains. The only means of transport that can bring Samuel to the nomads: a donkey. Will Samuel make the journey? Isn't such a trip through a country shaken by conflict far too dangerous? And which Afghanistan will Samuel get to know?

Kayaking is Eike's passion. He has paddled almost the entire Scandinavian coast in his boat. One of the best things about kayaking: being outside, away and free from everything. Outdoor life is very important to Eike - and perhaps becomes even more important as we live in a time in which going out and getting outside is no longer necessarily a given and in which we have to give up our mobility. Eike wants to set off on a long tour and definitely wants to share his love of the outdoors with his girlfriend Kim: swap his holiday home for a tent and only be out on the water during the day. At first, Kim is only partially enthusiastic about vacation. Nevertheless, the two set off together. The plan: two weeks through Norway's archipelago.

A miracle cure for cancer, HIV, strokes and Covid-19? Chlorine dioxide is supposed to help against all of this - if you drink it. The internet is full of stories of supposed miracle healings. But chlorine dioxide, also called “MMS” in the community, is a corrosive chemical that is actually used as a disinfectant and bleaching agent. Anyone who drinks it can burn themselves internally and even damage organs. And anyone who sells or advertises it as a cure can be liable to prosecution - but it is still advertised as a cure. Because promises of healing bring money and there are people who make a lot of money with chlorine dioxide. STRG_F reporter Lea undercover researched how alternative practitioners and even doctors make a profit from the dangerous substance. How is the chlorine dioxide business going and why is it so difficult to stop?

Everyone loves trees! Chocolate, shoes, search queries - we are promised a tree for all of this. Start-ups, influencers and politicians are using the tree hype for their own benefit. But do trees really sprout everywhere? The STRG_F reporters Désirée and Zita researched the tree business for months, took a closer look at the advertising promises and followed the tree planters: to Berlin, Brandenburg and Madagascar.

The 2020 US election could end in chaos. The political mood in the USA has been toxic for several months and there have been repeated riots. After protests against racism and police violence, right-wing militias in particular have marched. So-called militias are heavily armed groups, some of which do not shy away from even planning civil war. And President Trump is egging on his patriotic supporters, including members of militias. Reporter Monica Harkins met a newly formed militia in Kentucky for CTRL_F. Billy Salters and his militia "United Freedom Alliance" train with live rifles. Who are these people and what do they want to do if the 2020 US election ends in chaos?

For 1,200 euros net per month, she feigned real interest, even love, on a dating portal. How did that feel? “Shitty,” says the dropout in an interview. STRG_F reporter Nadia worked undercover as a chat writer in the spring and looked behind the scenes of two dating portals. They use fake profiles - paid employees - to take money out of people's pockets when they are looking for love. False promises, targeted calls, stolen photos: In Part II of this research, Nadia now talks to dropouts, insiders and victims of the lousy love business.

They have barely recovered from the first wave, and now the second is here. We asked nurses and doctors: How are you feeling right now?

The titles of their tracks are “Hang them up”, “Gaskammerlüge”, “Die Torturbank” and “Ab in den Ofen”. The Nazi band “Execution Squad” spreads hatred, incitement and calls for the murder of political opponents. For example, Katharina König-Preuss, a member of the LEFT state parliament in Thuringia, is threatened in the band's songs. Your group has filed a criminal complaint against unknown people. Unknown because no one knows exactly who the band is. "Firing Squad" does not perform in public, the band covers its tracks, pictures only show the band members wearing balaclavas. But there are rumors. STRG_F reporters Timo and Sebastian investigate these rumors and their own clues and ask: Who is under the storm masks? Who is the band and why can they continue to produce and spread their hate music?

Stefan Güth has a lot: As a successful investment banker, he moved to Thailand in 2012 with his wife, their daughter and full accounts. But his great happiness comes to an end quickly. When he was left in 2014, Stefan found himself in a deep life crisis. Instead of coming to his senses, the millionaire escalates, shows off money and cars and, as he himself says, walks through Pattaya as a "gold-covered Christmas tree" - until the police arrest him. Stefan ends up in Thai prison and goes through a brutal time there. In this film he tells how exactly he ended up in prison and what happened to him there.

Crystal meth is considered a horror drug - it is extremely addictive, destroys the user and is very widespread internationally. After cocaine and cannabis, it is the world's number 3 illegal substance. So far, the material has mainly come to Germany via the Czech border. Crystal has been a serious problem in neighboring federal states such as Bavaria and Saxony for many years. But now a new player is entering the market and trying to flood the drug scene with the substance: Dutch meth laboratories with the help of Mexican drug chefs.