As per an LG survey, 9 in 10 people experience “Low Battery Anxiety” i.e. they start panicking when their phone/tablet battery starts to run low (reaches below 20%). In such cases, people are most likely to plug their devices into a nearby charger… but it isn’t safe!
These days, it is pretty normal for public areas to have free USB charging ports. As helpful as it sounds, charging your phone from one of these ports can help hackers get a hold of your data!
To understand the risks associated with public USB charging ports, you should be aware of the motive behind the technology we know today as “USB”. The motive in question is data transfer. So, hackers can easily have malware installed on your device through these ports. The process through which your data can be read and exported by hackers is called "juice jacking".
According to a recent DuckDuckGo survey in which 1,029 American adults participated, only 42.26% of the respondents claimed that they were aware of the said risk. More than half of the participants (54.6%) said they weren’t aware!
There are multiple ways in which you can avoid being a target of such hack attacks. For starters, you can get a portable battery pack or power bank. All you have to do is charge it regularly and use it whenever required!
Also, keep your own USB cord along with an AC adapter with you. The AC power brings along an unrivaled level of security!
If the first two solutions don’t work for you, simply purchase a USB charge-only adapter or a “USB condom”. It works as a wall between your USB wire and the public charging port and doesn’t let the device data pass through it, keeping it safe from attackers!
Also read: Your Favorite Notes Taking App Is Not Encrypting Your Data By Default
These days, it is pretty normal for public areas to have free USB charging ports. As helpful as it sounds, charging your phone from one of these ports can help hackers get a hold of your data!
To understand the risks associated with public USB charging ports, you should be aware of the motive behind the technology we know today as “USB”. The motive in question is data transfer. So, hackers can easily have malware installed on your device through these ports. The process through which your data can be read and exported by hackers is called "juice jacking".
According to a recent DuckDuckGo survey in which 1,029 American adults participated, only 42.26% of the respondents claimed that they were aware of the said risk. More than half of the participants (54.6%) said they weren’t aware!
There are multiple ways in which you can avoid being a target of such hack attacks. For starters, you can get a portable battery pack or power bank. All you have to do is charge it regularly and use it whenever required!
Also, keep your own USB cord along with an AC adapter with you. The AC power brings along an unrivaled level of security!
If the first two solutions don’t work for you, simply purchase a USB charge-only adapter or a “USB condom”. It works as a wall between your USB wire and the public charging port and doesn’t let the device data pass through it, keeping it safe from attackers!
Also read: Your Favorite Notes Taking App Is Not Encrypting Your Data By Default
