in short, Juice jacking is a type of cyberattack that uses a USB charging port to steal data or infect your phone with malware.
A cyber attack can happen not only by clicking on a link but also by charging mobile, know how a hacker can steal your data while charging your phone.
Explanation of juice jacking
Suppose you are stuck in a railway station or somewhere else and your mobile battery is also going to run out. What would you do in this situation? If there is a charger, then you will try to find the charging point. If the point is not available, then if you have a power bank, then charge with it, if you do not have a power bank, then try to find a USB cable attached so that you can charge your phone.
But do you know how dangerous it can be for you to charge the phone by putting a USB in any such port? This will be the only way for you to charge the phone, but it’s an opportunity for a hacker to steal your data.
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What is Juice Jacking?
Juice jacking is a method of hacking, its works through the USB charging port. You must have seen such USB charging ports in restaurants, hotels, or public places like railways, bus stations so that people can charge their mobiles on the way.
But in some private places, they do not only do the job of charging the phone but also come in the work of stealing mobile data. Hackers copy the data from the same cable with which you are charging the phone.
How does juice jacking work?
As you may have noticed, when you charge your phone through the USB port of your computer or laptop, this also opens up the option to transfer files between the two systems.
That’s because a USB port is not simply a power socket. A regular USB connector has five points, where only one is needed to charge. Two of the others are used by default for data transfers.
What harm can juice jacking cause to us?
- Data theft: During the charge, the hacker can data stolen from the connected device.
- Malware installation: During the charge, the hacker can be install malware application and get whole access of you device.
How can I protect my data from Juice Jacking?
These tips can help you keep your devices safe.
- Avoid public charging stations: Avoid public charging station like railway, airport, bus stand etc.
- Use USB pass-through device: These adapters allow power to flow through but block the data pin on the USB charger, That means the device charge properly, but data won’t transfer to another device.
- Use specialized cables for charging: You can buy a special USB cable that doesn’t have pinout connections for data transfer.
The best defense against any cyberattack is awareness. Hope this piece of information may help you safeguard your crucial data. Follow these simple tips, and avoid plugging your device into unknown charging stations.
History of juice jacking
Juice Jacking was first introduced to the public conversation at a hacking conference called DEF CON in August 2011.