Skip to main content
  1. Home
  2. Computing
  3. News

Be careful before using your PC to charge up your e-cigarette for your next vaping fix

By

researcher shows e cigarettes can be source of malware vaping guide header 640x0
Image used with permission by copyright holder
Not a day goes by, it sometimes seems, that we don’t hear about another way that hackers can attack our systems and steal our information. Keeping a system locked down and secure can seem like an impossible task when it can be vulnerable in ways that we’d never suspect.

One recent example is some work done by researcher Ross Bevington, who showed that the seemingly innocuous and decidedly low-tech e-cigarette can be used to break into a machine, as ExtremeTech reports. Don’t panic yet, however, because it’s not the vaporous aspects of e-cigarettes themselves that are at fault.

Recommended Videos

Bevington demonstrated the method of attack using an e-cigarette in a video that he shared on Twitter:

Sorry if I get vape pens banned at your work place…… pic.twitter.com/VYhIIvyDEx

— Wll buy derby ticket (@FourOctets) May 25, 2017

Basically, e-cigarettes require power to function, given that they heat up liquids to create vapors that users inhale as a substitute for burning tobacco. As with many devices today, some rechargeable e-cigarettes come equipped with USB connections to draw power from PCs. That USB connection provides a handy way to keep vaping when you can’t get to a wall socket.

The problem is that any device that can plug into a USB port can hide electronics that can host malware that executes commands when plugged in and wreak havoc on a system. PCs have been designed to make it easy to run programs when USB drives are plugged in and that very convenience can make a system vulnerable to attack. The problem is so severe that some people are making tools that sit between a USB port and the outside world, forming an elaborate barrier.

Of course, e-cigarettes aren’t dangerous out of the box, and if you only use ones that you’ve purchased and don’t let random people plug theirs into your PC, then you’re probably safe. Rather, the real concern is that you could acquire an e-cigarette from a sketchy source that’s been modified to include PC-like smarts.

USB-based malware attacks are nothing new, nor are tools that can literally fry a motherboard merely by plugging in what looks like a typical USB flash drive. While modern systems do have some safeguards built in to stop code from executing, plenty of examples exist that enable these systems to be bypassed. The simplest response is to follow a strict policy of never plugging anything into your USB port if you’re not 100-percent certain it’s safe — and that includes waiting until you get to a plug before charging up your e-cigarette for a quick fix.

Editors’ Recommendations

Topics
Mark Coppock
Mark Coppock
Computing Writer
Mark has been a geek since MS-DOS gave way to Windows and the PalmPilot was a thing. He’s translated his love for…
How to keep your Microsoft Teams status active
Man uses Microsoft Teams on a laptop in order to video chat.

Keeping your Microsoft Teams status as "Active" can be a stressful experience if your boss is constantly looking over your shoulder. It might not be the most common Teams problem, but it's one we've all experienced at some point. While you might be getting on with something productive, if the person in charge doesn't know that and doesn't take kindle to "Busy" statuses, you may want to try some tricks to keep your status active when using Microsoft Teams.

Fortunately there are a number of ways you can do that, from the honest and transparent, to the slightly sneaky. No judgement here. You do what you need to do. We're just here to teach you how to keep your Team status active.

Read more
The most common Microsoft Teams problems and how to fix them
A close-up of someone using Microsoft Teams on a laptop for a videoconference.

Microsoft Teams was introduced in 2017 as a unified communication and collaboration platform aimed at helping businesses and organizations get things done. Microsoft leveraged the company's existing Office software experience and created a unified experience between Teams, Office 365, and Skype for Business. However, as with all software, things don't always go according to plan. If you're using Microsoft Teams, sometimes you can run into problems.

We're big Teams users here at Digital Trends -- it's our go-to communication and meeting tool -- and we've come across a few issues ourselves over the years. In the event you're having Microsoft Teams issues, here's how to fix some of the most common problems.

Read more
How to delete or hide chats in Microsoft Teams
Running Microsoft Teams on the Galaxy Tab S8.

Microsoft Teams is a terrific workplace platform for keeping the camaraderie strong. Featuring collaborative messaging, video conferencing, and file-sharing tools, it’s your one-stop-shop for in-office, hybrid and at-home workers alike. But anyone with a long history of using Microsoft Teams will tell you how clogged up your message stockpile can get. Fortunately, deleting and hiding these exchanges is relatively easy to do, and we’ve put together this guide to help.

Read more