Benefits / Resources / Articles
September 25, 2019

Read this before you borrow someone’s charger…

As a photographer, you're constantly on the go. Work-life means tons of bags, cables, cords, and devices. It's happened to all of us: we're at the airport or a coffee shop or on an assignment and our device dies...the phone or laptop we so desperately need to survive. The problem is made unbearably worse when you notice you didn't remember to bring your charging cable. So, just ask the nearest person if you can borrow theirs for a few minutes, right?

According to this article, wrong. Suzanne Rowan Kelleher, writing for Forbes, wants to tell you "Why you should never borrow someone else's charging cable."  She interviews several cybersecurity experts who warn to never borrow a charger from a stranger. The head of IBM Security even goes so far as to say, "If you were on a trip and realized you forgot to pack underwear, you wouldn't ask all your co-travelers if you could borrow their underwear. You'd go to a store and buy new underwear." Yikes!

Sophisticated hackers can now implant malware into devices like charging cables which can hijack your device. Your phone could be remotely accessed and controlled by someone else. Or your laptop could have everything on it wiped out. 

Read the article on Forbes today and see if you think it's alarmist or alarming! Let us know on theLoop if it's made you reconsider borrowing the charger from that airplane passenger you're seated next to. 

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