Be careful! your E-Cigarette can be used to hack your computer

Ross Bevington (a security researcher) found that an E-cigarette can hack a computer by fooling it to think that it was a keyboard. It was also able to hack the computer by interfering with its network traffic.

For those unfamiliar, an electronic cigarette or e-cigarette is a handheld electronic device that creates an aerosol by heating a liquid. The user then inhales the aerosol. Using e-cigarettes is sometimes called vaping. The liquid in the e-cigarette, called e-liquid, is usually made of nicotine, propylene glycol, glycerine, and flavorings.

Hackers always trying to find new methods to hack their victims. This security issue happens because most of the e-cigarettes come with a rechargeable lithium-ion battery, that can be plugged into a cable or directly connects to the USB port of the computer.

The researcher said to SkyNews:
“He had modified the vape pen by simply adding a hardware chip which allowed the device to communicate with the laptop as if it were a keyboard or mouse – A pre-written script that was saved on the vape made Windows open up the Notepad application and typed “Do you even vape bro!!!!”

E-cigarettesers users are recommended to disable data pins on the USB and keep only cable charge to prevent any data exchange between the devices it connects to avoid such attacks.

Related posts

Kia Dealer Portal Vulnerability Risked Millions of Cars

Latest Octo Malware Variant Mimics Popular Apps Like NordVPN, Chrome

Transport for London Cyberattack: Employee Passwords Reset; Teen Suspect Arrested