‘Juice Jacking’ Is The New Way Your Smartphone Can Be Hacked

How many times have you charged your phone at an airport, coffeeshop, or anywhere other than your home?

It turns out, using a public power source to charge your phone can be a way for a hacker to access your data.

It's called 'juice jacking.' HowToGeek explains, "A correctly behaving USB charging port wouldn’t even try to access your phone’s data. But there’s nothing stopping it from trying after you plug in a USB cable. A charging port could try to access private data on your phone or exploit a security vulnerability and run dangerous code on your device."

Older smartphones are most vulnerable to these types of data breaches -- newer smartphones will prompt you to 'Trust This Device' when you plug it in. However, if you give the OK to trust the device, then you are opening yourself for access to your phone's data. But you can decline to "trust" and still charge your device.

Source: How to Protect Yourself From Public USB Charging Ports | How To Geek