www.welivesecurity.com Open in urlscan Pro
2a02:26f0:7100::1720:ee38  Public Scan

Form analysis
5 forms found in the DOM

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---

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AVOID JUICE JACKING AND RECHARGE YOUR BATTERIES SAFELY THIS SUMMER

Cybercriminals can use USB charging stations in airports, hotels, malls or other
public spaces as conduits for malware
Márk Szabó
28 Jun 2023 - 11:30AM
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Cybercriminals can use USB charging stations in airports, hotels, malls or other
public spaces as conduits for malware

Over the past 10-plus years, modern smartphones and other portable devices have
become our constant companions. These days, smartphones let us do much more than
make phone calls or send text messages. Mobile technology puts the world at our
fingertips and we use our phones in lieu of our computers for anything from
sending e-mails to booking our vacations and checking our bank accounts. Laptops
have also become more portable and travel-friendly, and their compact form
factor makes their usage convenient ‘on the road’.

However, all these capabilities come at a cost. Phones and laptops cannot stay
constantly plugged in like desktop PCs. With their often-power-hungry
processors, they will only last for a short time on a charge. This is what the
proliferation of public charging points wanted to solve by providing a
convenient way for people to plug in their devices while not at home or work.

Security-wise, however, there are concerns with these charging spots. As the
summer travel season looms, you may want to pay heed to a recent warning from
the Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI).


FBI WARNS: AVOID PUBLIC CHARGING STATIONS

In a recent tweet, the Denver office of the FBI warned people against the usage
of free charging stations in airports, hotels, or shopping centers, as bad
actors have figured out ways to use public USB ports to introduce malware and
monitoring software onto devices.





Not unlike in earlier warnings of the same ilk, the FBI recommends that people
bring their own chargers and USB cords with them, and use an electrical outlet
instead (since adapters carry electricity, not data).

In juice jacking (a term coined by security journalist Brian Krebs in 2011), any
device that connects to such a port through a USB cable could become a victim.
Malware installed through a corrupted USB port can do a tremendous amount of
damage to a device, including locking it, exfiltrating personal data and
passwords, and giving crooks access to the device owner’s online accounts.


HACKED BY A CHARGER

We have all found ourselves needing a quick charge at some point, especially
after a long day at school or outside – places where electrical outlets aren’t
exactly easy to find. Many kids and students, for example, use public charging
spots on buses/trains or in shopping malls. The issue is that since USB outlets
are used for both charging and file transfers, their file transfer capability
can be misused for transferring malware onto a device.

Moreover, even just a regular USB cable left somewhere could be malicious,
mimicking the old tactic of “lost and found” malware-laden CDs or flash drives.

There are many types of malware that a crook could install onto your device. As
mentioned previously, they could install ransomware, which locks your phone
until you pay a “ransom,” but the promise of unlocking could be false. Likewise,
they could install spyware, tracking your habits or your physical location. Then
there are Trojans, which could serve multiple purposes, including data theft.


AWARENESS AND VIGILANCE GO A LONG WAY

Regarding cybersecurity threats, awareness is the most important aspect.
Otherwise, unsuspecting users would be more likely to fall prey to any kind of
scam, data theft, breach, or another threat. This goes hand in hand with
vigilance, which is especially important for people using their company-issued
devices also for private purposes, as even a small mistake based on human error
could end costing the company up dearly.

With that in mind, it’s better to be safe than sorry and take these precautions:

 1. As per the FBI, avoid using public USB charging spots. They can be used to
    compromise your devices, so opt to have your own outlet charger or an
    external power bank with you instead.
 2. Within your phone settings, try to disallow data transfers while charging.
    This setting is usually the default; however, it still is better to check
    and stay safe than sorry.
 3. Use “USB Condoms.” Yes, just like the name insinuates, these low-cost
    “condoms” connect to your USB port/cable and offer additional protection by
    severing any data transfer between a device and the charging point.
 4. Lastly, DO NOT use USB cables/power banks/flash drives or anything that
    connects to your device that is NOT yours or that you just found lying on
    the street or on a table.

With these points in mind, you can be sure that you are one step ahead of
potential security issues related to charging, but if you still harbor some
doubts, feel free to check out some of our other articles on WeLiveSecurity or
the ESET Blog for additional tips and best practices.


Márk Szabó
28 Jun 2023 - 11:30AM


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