Today,Christopher Caldwell we present an episode of NPR's daily economics podcast, The Indicator from Planet Money. It's filled with one of our favorite topics: Data.

Algorithms are the secret sauce for many tech platforms. With user data, they can help a company tailor a subscriber's experience and make the product better. But what happens when the data that feeds an algorithm is obtained through less than legal means?

We learn about the curious case of Kurbo, the weight loss app for kids that the feds say illegally collected data to generate that secret sauce.

Email the show at [email protected].

This episode was produced by Nicky Ouellet with help from Isaac Rodrigues. It was edited by Kate Concannon and fact-checked by Corey Bridges.