When you’re at most major airports, you’re probably familiar with the sight of USB charging stations made readily available so you can charge your phone before your flight. How nice of them, providing us life support for our devices. Thank you airports!
Source: GlobalNews.sg
Well, it turns out you might want to stop using those free-of-charge (see what we did there) charging stations, because you’re likely putting your own private data at risk! Why, you ask? Well because you could easily become a victim of ‘juice jacking’.
Suggestive as it may sound, ‘juice jacking’ happens when someone with malicious intent meddles with the USB charging outlet by hijacking it with malware that will infect your device if you plug it in. Upon infection, you could possibly give criminals access to all your information without you even knowing it or worse still, they can hold your device hostage with ransomware.
So how do you prevent being a victim of ‘juice jacking’? By wearing a USB condom.
Source: Flickr
No, not a literal condom. A ‘USB condom’ is a device that sits between your charging cable and the charging port itself. It blocks the data ports on the USB charging station, leaving only the current to pass through. That way, you can charge your device without exposing it to any potential data breaches. Or you know, just bring your own charger.
Source: Freedom of The Press Foundation
So for all of you who are frequent flyers, be sure to travel with a ‘USB condom’ at all times before charging your devices at these public charging ports!
Also read: Beware: Charging Your Phone In The Car Could Ruin Your Phone & Car Battery! Here’s Why
