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Experts, FBI warn against public charging stations

PITTSBURGH — Tech experts and FBI agents are issuing warnings about public charging stations.

FBI Denver recently issued a public service announcement, warning people that “bad actors have figured out ways to use public USB ports to introduce malware and monitoring software onto devices.”

People are warned against public USB ports at airports, hotels, shopping centers or other public spaces.

Channel 11 spoke with Cyber Security Expert and “Ethical Hacker” Bryan Seely for more insight.

He said that compromised USB ports aren’t easily detected.

“To modify them, there’s so many different variations, and hobbyists really, really spend a lot of time to make them look really, really good,” he said. “You won’t even notice you got infected.”

Seely said that there are USB products that you can purchase to block your data from being stolen. But, your safest bet is to bring your own charger and plug it into an electrical outlet.

Seely advised to also be cautious when using a public Wi-Fi domains, which can also be accessed by hackers. And, be wary of public charging cords, which can include internal servers to get ahold of your information.

Channel 11 reached out to the Pittsburgh International Airport about its public charging stations.

A spokesman sent us this statement:

“Safety and security are always the top priority at Pittsburgh International Airport. Our stations are not part of a network and staff remove any cables and cords left behind that could contain malware. Travelers are always encouraged to inspect charging ports before using them and look for signs of anything suspicious and to report anything unusual to airport staff.”

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