Heads up, Fourth of July travelers — TSA says to not use these two airport perks
Ahead of possible record-setting travel numbers at North Texas airports for Fourth of July travel, it’s important to stay safe. The Transportation Security Administration has historically warned airport travelers against using two complimentary airport amenities.
The first: Those free USB ports stationed across many gates and terminals. The second: Free public WiFi.
Nowadays, browsing the internet on your electronics is how many people pass the time at the airport. And especially for longer flights, it’s important to have your device fully charged and ready to go. So why is the TSA warning travelers about these things?
Well, according to a TSA Facebook post, these two amenities are prone to “juice jacking,” or, in layman’s terms, hacking. Using the USB ports or free WiFi can lead to a security breach on your device, which probably has private information stored on it.
What is juice jacking?
According to the Federal Communications Commission, juice jacking is when “bad actors can load malware onto public USB charging stations to maliciously access electronic devices while they are being charged. Malware installed through a corrupted USB port can lock a device or export personal data and passwords directly to the perpetrator.”
From juice jacking, your private information is accessible to the hacker and can be sold to other hackers.
Juice jacking has been around for about a decade. However, smartphone companies quickly responded to the threat and implemented counter-efforts. A modern form of juice jacking is known as “choice jacking.”
“Choice Jacking attacks operate under the same threat model and attacker goals as Juice Jacking attacks,” according to a research paper from Graz University of Technology. “They leverage malicious chargers to gain file access or code execution on mobile devices.”
The report highlights that the risk for choice jacking is higher for Android users, over Apple users. But overall, all smartphone users should beware of this possibility.
“In this technological age, cybersecurity has never been more important,” the TSA said.
Why you should be weary of free WiFi
What’s tricky about free WiFi at airports (or hotels, businesses or really, anywhere) is that hackers can make a fake network that misleads you. Of course, the airport’s real WiFi is safe, but the danger is that travelers join a fake network.
If you are connecting to free WiFi, do not:
Download an app from a welcome page
Fill out online forms
Login into your Microsoft or Google accounts
Make online purchases
Give out any personal information
Alternate solutions to free WiFi and complimentary USB ports
When traveling, it’s best to bring your own portable charger.
The FCC also recommends:
Using AC power outlets (the ones with three holes).
Carry a charging-only cable (prevents data from sending or receiving while charging).
If you plug in and a prompt appears askin you to “trust” the charger, always choose “don’t trust and just charge.”
For connecting to public WiFi, you can avoid hackers by:
Checking with staff to ensure the WiFi hotspot is correct and not fraudulent.
Make sure all websites you exchange information with have “https” at the beginning of the web address.
Install an app that verifies WiFi networks that sprout from a welcome browser.
Adjust WiFi settings so your phone does not automatically connect to WiFi.
If you travel a lot and connect to a lot of WiFi, consider purchasing your own VPN.
If you need to access private/personal information, use your phone’s data rather than free public wifi.