WHERE IT STARTED
FIRST SEEN: August 2011 (DEF CON demonstration) · GOING FOR: About 15 years as a warned-about threat; no confirmed real-world losses
Demonstrated and named at DEF CON 19 in Las Vegas in August 2011; no first real-world case has ever been confirmed.
The term was coined by journalist Brian Krebs in August 2011 after the 'Wall of Sheep' team at DEF CON 19 in Las Vegas built a free charging kiosk that displayed a warning when phones connected, to show that a USB port can carry data as well as power. Georgia Tech researchers demonstrated 'Mactans', a malicious charger that installed malware on an iPhone, at Black Hat in 2013. The FBI's Denver office and the FCC issued public warnings in April 2023, but the original researchers and Krebs note there is no documented case of a real attack in the wild.
HOW IT WORKS
In theory, a public USB charging port or a tampered cable hides a small computer that, when a phone is plugged in, negotiates a data connection and either copies photos, contacts and messages or installs malware. Modern phones block data transfer until the user taps 'Trust this device', which is why security researchers regard the risk as low. Genuine risks come from purpose-built malicious cables sold to penetration testers, not from airport kiosks.
Phone asks 'Trust this computer?' or 'Allow data access?' when plugged into a public portCharging port or cable that is loose, modified or not part of the kioskUnexpected data-transfer notification while chargingKiosk offering a cable rather than a bare power socketAny scam email using 'juice jacking' fear to sell a product
HOW USEFUL IT IS TO CRIMINALS
Building a malicious charger is cheap, but modern phones require the user to approve data access, so the attack has never been observed outside conferences. There are no published success rates, no victims and no prosecutions; its main effect has been to sell 'USB condom' data blockers.
THE DAMAGE IT HAS CAUSED
$0
No documented real-world losses — KrebsOnSecurity, Apr 2023
No body publishes any losses because none have been documented: Brian Krebs and the DEF CON researchers who created the demo say no juice-jacking kiosk has ever been found in the wild. The only measurable harm is public anxiety generated by the 2023 FBI and FCC warnings.
0 Publicly documented real-world juice-jacking attacks, per the researchers who invented the demonstration (KrebsOnSecurity, Apr 2023)
2011 Year the term was coined at DEF CON 19 (KrebsOnSecurity, Aug 2011)
2023 Year of the FBI Denver and FCC advisories that made it a global headline (Malwarebytes, Apr 2023)
WHO USES IT MOST
MOST OF ALL: 🇺🇸 United States ▸
The concept was demonstrated at DEF CON in Las Vegas, named by a US journalist and amplified by FBI and FCC advisories; no country has recorded a confirmed attack (KrebsOnSecurity, 2023).
United States (demonstrations, FBI and FCC warnings)
GOVERNMENTS LINKED TO IT
No government is documented as using this method.
NOTABLE PEOPLE WHO USED IT — RANKED BY PROFILE ORDER (NOT BY AMOUNT)
#1 Brian Krebs RESEARCHER (NO CRIME)REPORT PENDING
No losses recorded · 2011
Security journalist who coined the term 'juice jacking' in 2011 and in 2023 reported that no real-world attacks had ever been documented.
SOURCE: KrebsOnSecurity, 'Beware of Juice-Jacking', Aug 2011; 'Why is Juice Jacking Suddenly Back in the News?', Apr 2023
#2 Brian Markus, Joseph Mlodzianowski and Robert Rowley (Wall of Sheep) RESEARCHER (NO CRIME)REPORT PENDING
No losses recorded · 2011
Built the DEF CON 19 charging kiosk that proved the concept; Markus later said he knew of no juice-jacking kiosk ever found in the wild.
SOURCE: KrebsOnSecurity, Apr 2023; Wikipedia pointer 'Juice jacking'
#3 FBI Denver field office GOVERNMENT ADVISORYREPORT PENDING
No losses recorded · 2023
Issued the April 2023 warning to avoid free charging stations in airports, hotels and malls that revived worldwide media coverage despite no documented cases.
SOURCE: Malwarebytes, Apr 2023; Tom's Guide
SOURCES
KrebsOnSecurity, 'Beware of Juice-Jacking', Aug 2011
KrebsOnSecurity, 'Why is Juice Jacking Suddenly Back in the News?', Apr 2023
Malwarebytes, 'Don't plug your phone into a free charging station, warns FBI', Apr 2023
Tom's Guide, 'FBI issues warning over public phone chargers'
Stack Cyber, 'Juice Jacking: The USB Charging Threat That Never Was'
Wikipedia pointer, 'Juice jacking'