Mobile alert: why not recharge your phone in public places

Charge your phone away from home it is for many a common practice, even if it is more dangerous than it seems to the point of becoming possible cyber threat.

He FBI recently warned that free charging stations for mobile devices are a latent cyber threatas posted on his official Twitter account.

One of the world’s top security organizations has alerted more than US citizens, especially those inside airports, hotels and shopping malls.

The Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI) of Denver (Colorado) has warned of the technique used by the hackers to introduce malicious programs (malware) and surveillance of electronic devices via public USB ports.

Recharge your cell phone outside the home: the FBI alarm

“Avoid using free charging stations at airports, hotels or shopping malls. Cybercriminals have figured out how to use public USB ports to sneak in malware AND Software device surveillance. Bring your own charger and USB cable and use a power outlet instead“, they wrote from the security agency.

The FBI isn’t the only one warning of this danger; so did the Federal Communications Commission (FCC) on its website, pointing out that hackers can upload malware into USB ports to “mischievously” access devices, a practice the agency calls “juice jacking.”

In this way, cybercriminals can acquire personal data and passwords, for personal use or for sale to third parties. The FCC recommends bring your own USB cable with youthrough which there is no such danger.

The Federal Communications Commission already warned of this type of fraud in 2021. “If your battery is running low, keep in mind that charging your electronic device at charging stations with free USB ports […] could have harmful consequences. You could become a victim of “juice jacking” [extracción de jugo, en español], a new cyber theft tactic“, highlighted the agency.

“Malware installed through a dirty USB port can lock down a device or export personal data and passwords directly to the perpetrator,” they added. Furthermore, they have reported that cybercriminals can even give away infected cables as a promotional gift.

However, despite the alarms raised by the federal government, it is not clear how frequent these attacks really are.

Using the phone while charging damages the battery: myth or reality?

THE batteries Most cell phones work very well at first but over time their performance decreases, they lose effectiveness and durability. Various tricks can be used to extend the battery life as much as possible, although there are also many myths about it.

One of the most popular theories for not damaging the useful life of batteries is do not use the mobile phone while chargingor leave it plugged in overnight. Right? Everything seems to point to it.

Back in the day, it was possible that using your phone while charging was harmful, but in mid-2021, batteries, like phones, have come a long way. Therefore, what used to be a reality gradually turned into a myth.

Therefore, the most fearful users they can use their mobile phones without any problem while charging. The only downside is that your mobility will be limited by the length of the charging cable, which is usually not very long. Although to overcome this small inconvenience there are many portable chargers.

Although batteries have been proven not to fail for this reason, manufacturers recommend it During the first ten minutes of charging, more or less, the mobile phone is left alone.