The cybercriminals could infect a device with many varieties of malware. For example, they could slip in a Trojan horse to control everything you do, a virus that causes a malfunction, a keylogger to steal passwords… Now, could they literally burn down a computer? The truth is that yes, although with certain nuances. We are going to explain how they could do it and what you should take into account to prevent this from happening.
They could make use of a physical device, a flash drive, and seriously endanger your team. It is also known as USB Killer and yes, it could burn physical components of a computer. You could melt the motherboard, for example. In extreme cases, beyond stopping working it could even go up in flames. Basically, it can cause a short circuit.
USB to burn a computer
But how exactly does it work? What hackers do is modify that usb stick. They can not only sneak in a virus, but also cause it to physically damage the device. What they do is cause a surge of voltage repeatedly to the device where you connect it.
A USB port is designed to withstand a voltage of 5V. If they have modified that flash drive so that it has 210-220V, we are talking about a surge important. This can seriously damage the electrical system of that computer and make it completely useless. Something that can even burn the equipment.
Something to keep in mind is that this type of device is really very cheap. They could use a flash drive for just 3-5 euros and achieve the goal of physically damage a computer. What they do is modify that memory so that, as we have explained, it causes an overvoltage.
The attack can come from different ways. It can act as soon as the pendrive is connected, it can also be executed at a certain time or even controlled by the hacker, to activate it remotely when it is most interesting for him. This last method could be executed from the mobile, for example.
How to avoid these attacks
How can you prevent them from attacking you through a flash drive and they can even burn your computer? The best way is avoid errors. The positive is that they are going to need you to put that memory in the team. Therefore, simply by preventing that from happening, you will have a lot of gains in terms of security.
Our advice is never to connect a memory that you have found somewhere. Cybercriminals can distribute them in places like a library, university, etc. They hope that someone finds them and they decide to use them on their computer, to see if they can find any information about who owns it. Therefore, avoid making this mistake.
You should also be careful when buy a usb stick. Although it is not very common, there have been cases of flash drives sold on the Internet that are actually fake. Beware of unknown pages, very cheap memories and where you can not find references. They could have slipped in a virus or modified the device.
In addition, it is always convenient to have good protected the equipment. Install a good antivirus and keep the system updated. This will help you detect threats and reduce the risk that they can steal your passwords, data or even burn your computer without you realizing it.
In short, as you can see, they can use a flash drive to physically damage your devices. It is essential that you take measures and avoid using unknown memories, that you do not really know who they belong to. Security and privacy must always be present in your day to day and reduce risk. It is important to know what to do if a flash drive has a virus.
