Justin Kloczko

Justin Kloczko writes about tech, energy and insurance for Consumer Watchdog. He’s covered privacy issues extensively, including data collection, privacy rights and legislation, artificial intelligence, algorithms, and surveillance pricing.
 
He’s a recovering daily newspaper reporter with experience covering local government, education, and the criminal justice system at the Hartford Advocate, Middletown Press, and  Manchester Journal Inquirer. His work has appeared in Vice, Daily Beast, The New Republic, KCRW and Los Angeles Magazine.
 
While covering civil litigation at the Los Angeles Daily Journal he won LA Press Club awards for his stories detailing corruption at the Los Angeles City Attorney’s Office and the Los Angeles Department of Water & Power. The stories led to the criminal prosecutions of multiple city officials. Justin also authored The Debaser, an independent newsletter about LA culture and politics that garnered him an appearance on the ABC/Hulu documentary about disgraced plaintiff’s attorney Tom Girardi called “The Housewife and the Hustler.”

Consumer Alert Details Uber Example of Surveillance Pricing

Uber Tells Us One Thing and Does Another Los Angeles, CA — A short consumer alert video produced by Consumer Watchdog details Uber appearing to engage in surveillance pricing...

New Episode of Smoke & Mirrors Explores Why Fire Survivors Want California Insurance Commissioner Ricardo Lara Out

A backdoor agreement between California Insurance Commissioner Ricardo Lara and major insurance companies led to a wave of dropped policies before 2025’s catastrophic LA fires.

New Episode of Smoke & Mirrors Reveals How Tech and Algorithms Hurt Policyholders

Hidden algorithms and artificial intelligence used by the nation’s largest home insurance companies are leaving many homeowners underinsured, underpaid, or denied home insurance completely. 

Smoke & Mirrors Podcast Exposes Troubling Tactics of Insurance Subcontractors in Wildfire Recovery

We uncover the underworld of fire insurance subcontracting, where companies positioned as experts in smoke testing and home remediation work for insurers seeking to cut costs.

New Investigative Podcast Series Uncovers Wildfire Insurance Abuses 

Smoke & Mirrors uncovers a web of little-known subcontractors and unseen technology that facilitate claims delays, lowballed payouts and denials, and offers advice on what consumers can do about it.

Industry Disinformation Kills Surveillance Pricing Bill 

Two people should not be paying different prices for the same product based on the collection of their personal data. 

KELSEY SZAMET 

By the time the flames stopped crawling across the foothills of Altadena, the homes across the street from Kelsey Szamet were reduced to ashes....

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