Public charging stations include parks, airports, coffee shops, internet stations, libraries, etc. Anywhere where anyone can plug in their charger to charge their device. So how do hackers infect your phone with this secret malware? Well, when you plug into the public charging station, everything will look quite fine. Your device will be getting power and will begin to charge, but what you don’t see hidden behind the charging station is a device that infects your phone with this dangerous malware.
What Happens When Your Phone or Tablet Gets Infected?
Once the malware has infiltrated your phone via your charger, the hacker will have access to basically everything on your phone. Your phone is no longer yours as the software allows the hacker to control applications and read all information on your device. The secret malware allows the hacker to read your text messages, see your contacts, view your online transactions and worst, and see your bank and bank account. Another bad thing about juice jacking is that once you unplug from the public charging station, the malware remains on your device and the hacker still has total control of your phone. The hacker is able to even control your phone’s camera and can take pictures of you or your surroundings at will. This my friend is a very scary hack.
How Do You Protect Your Device?
For juice jacking, your best bet is to simply do not use public charging stations. You can simply purchase a power bank and keep that fully charged. When your phone or tablet runs out of battery power, just plug your phone into your power bank for recharge. Your next best bet to prevent hackers from hacking your phone when using a public charging station is to get yourself a USB Data Blocker. A data blocker is a simple cheap small device that looks like a flash drive that you plug into your device’s USB Port and then plug the charger into the data blocker. The data blocker allows your phone to be charged while blocking any form of data transfer. This means that malware will not be able to be transferred to your device.
What to Do If You Believe Your Phone Is Hacked and Infected
Juice Jacking Is Dangerous Just as Any Other Hack
Juice jacking is dangerous due to to fact that people are quite unaware that by plugging your phone into a public charging station it is capable of being infected. Charge stations are used by millions of people worldwide. It is actually giving the hacker a direct way by a physical connection to hack your device. Always have a device such as a data blocker around to block these unscrupulous people from accessing your personal information. It is your duty to ensure your own digital privacy. Be safe on or offline. © 2020 Clive Williams
Comments
Rafael Vogel on February 26, 2020: Thanks for sharing. Never heard about this kind of hacking. A simple advise would be: Never plug into USB’s. Use your own charger (outlet or power bank). Clive Williams (author) from Jamaica on February 11, 2020: thats right Flourish Clive Williams (author) from Jamaica on February 11, 2020: you are welcome Pam FlourishAnyway from USA on February 11, 2020: I didn’t know this was a thing. People are so evil smart. Pamela Oglesby from Sunny Florida on February 11, 2020: I didn’t know hacking was called juice jacking. I think there is some good advice in your article. Thanks Clive. Clive Williams (author) from Jamaica on February 11, 2020: Ok Eric… Eric Dierker from Spring Valley, CA. U.S.A. on February 10, 2020: I tried but this is over my head – expect a note if I need help.
