Why You Shouldn’t Use Public Phone Chargers, According to the FBI

In places like the airport, USB ports are kindly scattered all over the place so you can plug in your phone to charge the battery. Except you really shouldn’t, at least according to the FBI .

The latest warning came from the FBI Denver field office’s Twitter account . The Bureau tweeted on April 6 warning not only Denver residents but all travelers not to use free charging stations in public places like airports, hotels or markets:

The FBI is referring here to a type of attack called ” juice hacking “: attackers infect public chargers with malware, sometimes leaving behind their own cables to lure passers-by. When you connect your phone to an infected USB charger, this malware can be installed on your device, blocking your access to your phone or copying sensitive data and sending it back to attackers.

The tweet contains the same warning as the FBI Internet Safety article . The FCC also posts similar advice on its website . But the random nature of the tweet raises questions and raises questions about the rise in such attacks. Unfortunately, jockjacking statistics are not publicly available, so it’s hard to say. In addition, the local FBI office in Denver insists that the tweet was for the public only , and not in response to a new threat.

But with public points everything is in order.

To be clear, using public outlets is not dangerous. As long as you bring your own power supply and USB cable with you, plugging into an outlet in a public place is just as safe as it is in your own home. There is no way for hackers to install malware on your device with electricity alone.

Or you can use the cable for charging only

Another good tip is to buy a charging-only cable if you don’t already have one. These cables are for powering the device only and cannot transmit data. This will prevent any potential malware from an infected power source from reaching your smartphone.

Most importantly, if you plug your device into a power source and see a prompt suggesting “share data” or “charge only”, be sure to select “charge only”. Otherwise, you are allowing your phone to interact with the software on the other end, which exposes you to malware and other risks.