We've all faced a time when we've had to charge our smartphones in public. Whether you've just got off a plane and need some extra juice, or streaming music has seriously drained your phone's battery, public charging stations can be a lifesaver.
However, while you're giving your smartphone a battery top-up, you could also be putting your personal data at serious risk. That's according to 'ethical' hacker, Ryan Montgomery.
Speaking on the PDB Podcast, Montgomery explained to host Patrick Bet-David that the same cable you trust to charge your phone can also be a target for hacking.
The 'white hat' hacker presented what appeared to be a typical charging cable, not any different to one you may use at home. However, while it can charge a smartphone, the cable is actually integrated with a Wi-Fi chip and a mini-computer.
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According to Montgomery, the seemingly nonchalant-looking cable, can actually emulate a keyboard and 'type at 860 characters per second'. The cable can monitor your keystrokes and be accessed remotely, because of the Wi-Fi chip inside.
As it looks so similar to the real thing, these cables can theoretically be accidentally used those looking to charge their phone, where a hacker can then 'inject keystrokes' and even install viruses on your Android-based device.
To show the real threat these cables can cause, the hacker showcased what the cable was capable of while on the PBD podcast.
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In a demonstration, Montgomery plugged the charger into a USB-C port on an MSI laptop. Afterwards, the ethical hacker was able to connect to the cable's Wi-Fi on his phone.
While connected, he opened up his phone's web browser, and used an interface to load up the laptops WordPad and type in text, all with the cable just being plugged into the laptop and nothing else.
Although he just used to it type the podcast's name, it 'could have been anything', showing just how easy it would be to cause harm to someone's tech, and personal data.
Montgomery stated, 'It could have been a malicious command, that could have been a virus that it downloaded.'
These cables can be used by hackers to steal people's credentials and personal data, to monitor and spy on others and to get access to your network and more.
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To avoid your phone, laptop, or other device unknowingly connecting to one of these 'extremely dangerous' cables, the ethical hacker recommends equipping yourself with a data blocker, which can be picked up cheap on Amazon.
These data blockers can be connected to your phone, laptop and other devices, and block any data transfers, keeping your private data safe.
While these cables can be used for nefarious reasons, they aren't designed for that purpose. Montgomery explains that the sophisticated cables are actually 'intended for penetration testers' like himself.
However, with how easily accessible these cables are online, it's likely they'll continue to be used by unethical hackers in the years to come.