PropertyValue
?:author
?:datePublished
  • 2019-11-18 (xsd:date)
?:headline
  • Is 'Juice-Jacking' via Public USB Ports a Real Security Threat? (en)
?:inLanguage
?:itemReviewed
?:mentions
?:reviewBody
  • On Nov. 8, 2019, the Los Angeles County District Attorney's Office published an advisory that warned travelers about juice-jacking, the practice of stealing information from or installing malware on phones while they are plugged into publicly accessible USB ports: Juice-jacking is a real security threat, and travelers should certainly take note of these tips from the Los Angeles County District Attorney's Office. However, this security threat was not new in November 2019, and safety features have been added to iOS and Android operating systems in order to combat this sort of crime. Furthermore, little evidence exists that juice jacking is a widespread problem. A USB cable has the capability of supplying power to a device, but it can also be used to transfer data. While this might be obvious when you are connecting your phone to another device (such as a laptop), data might not be the first thing you think of when plugging your phone into a USB-wall outlet. But security experts (and potentially criminals) have developed ways to turn these power outlets into data-transfer ports. Zdnet reported: While it is technically possible to turn a public USB-wall port into a malicious, data-transferring outlet, the criminal practice of juice-jacking doesn't appear to be widespread. In fact, when Tech Crunch followed up with the Los Angeles County District Attorney's Office to ask about reports from people whose data had been stolen this way, the office reported it had no cases of juice-jacking on its books: It should also be noted that both Android and iOS have incorporated features to prevent juice-jacking since this security threat first came to light circa 2011. On most modern phones, users will now see a pop-up alert if they are using a USB port that is capable of transferring data, instead of just power. To sum up: Juice-jacking is a genuine security threat, and the LA County District Attorney's Office did issue an advisory in November 2019 warning travelers against using public USB ports. However, while it's technically possible to juice-jack a phone, this is not a widespread criminal activity. (en)
?:reviewRating
rdf:type
?:url