My friend's laptop got fried at a coffee shop in Seattle because of a public USB port.

We were just trying to charge it while we grabbed a latte, and the next thing we know, it's infected with malware that locked all her files. I always thought those ports were just a convenience, but now I carry my own charger and a data-blocking adapter. What's the best portable power bank you guys use for situations like this?

3 comments

3 Comments

miamitchell3d ago

Yeah, those public USB ports are basically digital roulette. I call them "juice jacking" stations because you're gambling your whole laptop for a few percent of battery. My rule is now if it's not my own wall plug, it doesn't touch my stuff. I've got a basic Anker power bank that's been solid, nothing fancy but it charges my phone about five times. The peace of mind knowing it's just power and not some weird data handshake is worth carrying the extra thing.

reese_lee293d ago

That sounds like way too much worry over a tiny risk.

hannahs453d ago

My cousin's phone got bricked at the airport using one of those free charging kiosks. The repair guy said it was definitely a corrupted data transfer, not just a bad cable. I treat all public USB ports like they're actively hostile now.