This probably sounds familiar to you. Rather than sit around doing nothing before your flight, you pass the time on your phone. To save your battery, you plug into one of those handy USB charging stations.

Unfortunately, experts would rather you didn’t. That’s because those devices could be hacked by cybercriminals to steal your information.

“Plugging into a public USB port is kind of like finding a toothbrush on the side of the road and deciding to stick it in your mouth,” says Caleb Barlow, vice-president of X-Force Threat Intelligence at IBM Security.

Barlow instead recommends bringing your own power brick and plugging into an outlet or using a portable rechargeable battery when in public places.

What steps do you take to protect your devices and information when out in public?

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