Posted on Wednesday December 23, 2020Smartphones have become an indispensable tool for most of us. We use them for a wide range of activities, from gaming to checking social media to accessing work apps. Because of heavy use, our smartphones may sometimes run out of battery. When that happens and you're out in public with no access to your charger, using public charging kiosks to bring your phone back to life can seem like a good idea - but it's not. It only makes your phone vulnerable to a cyber scheme called juice jacking.
While newer phones can be charged wirelessly, older models still need power cords to power up their batteries. This charging method has one dangerous flaw: the cable used for charging can also be used for transferring data. Cybercriminals can exploit this flaw to commit juice jacking, or the act of using the USB data/power cable to illegitimately access phone data and/or inject malicious code into a device.
Juice jacking often happens at public charging kiosks. When you charge your phone, it is paired with a computer concealed within the charging stand. The computer can then access all of the information on your device, including personal data such as your address book, notes, photos, music, SMS database, and keyboard cache. It can even initiate a full backup of your phone, which can be accessed by the hacker wirelessly anytime.
Apart from stealing your data, cybercriminals can also inject malware into your phone through a public USB hub. All it takes is a minute of being plugged into a public charger for your phone to be infected by malware. Once infected, your phone can be prompted to display ads, download apps, or view web pages without your authorization.
The most effective precaution against juice jacking is simply not charging your phone using a third-party system. Here are some tips to help you avoid using a public kiosk charger: