Customers are advised by the FBI not to utilize public phone charging stations
Customers are being cautioned by the FBI not to use public phone charging stations to prevent infecting their devices with malware.
A tweet from the FBI’s Denver bureau last week claimed that malicious actors are using public USB ports, such as those seen at airports and shopping centers, to disseminate malware and tracking software. The organization did not offer any particular instances.
The organization said in the tweet to «use an electrical outlet and carry your own charger and USB cord.»
When a device’s battery is extremely low, many people find public charging stations appealing; nonetheless, security professionals have long expressed worries about the risk. To characterize the issue, researchers came up with the term «juice jacking» in 2011.
Data can be sent from your phone to other devices using the same wire that charges it. For example, you can transfer images from your iPhone to your computer by connecting it to your Mac via the charging cable.
The FCC blog post states that there have been instances where crooks have purposefully left wires plugged in at charging stations. Even instances of infected cables being distributed as promotional gifts have been reported.
