5 ms·

If power is all you are looking for you can always play it safe with a USB Condom. e.g https://www.amazon.com.au/s?k=PortaPow https://www.amazon.com.au/s?k=Por

If power is all you are looking for you can always play it safe with a USB Condom. e.g https://www.amazon.com.au/s?k=PortaPow https://www.amazon.com.au/s?k=PortaPow

stavros 2y ago
Keep in mind that this will limit you to 5V at 0.5A, if I'm not mistaken.
- ffsm8 2y ago
  And realize that if you're distrustful of the cable, you should be even more distrustful of that gadget which has even more space to add malicious parts and you're still unable to check it.
- Dylan16807 2y ago
  https://mg.lol/blog/data-blocker-teardown/ https://mg.lol/blog/data-blocker-teardown/ The normal PortaPow tells the device that it's a charger. The extra paranoid version with no components on the board will often limit charging, it depends on how the device treats a complete lack of data pins.
  - stavros 2y ago
    Yes, but if you use a data blocker with a microcontroller on it, you've just exchanged one company you need to trust for another.
    - Dylan16807 2y ago
      Not exactly. You now have to trust one entity instead of many, and it's an extremely small chip that can't do much, and the hack would have to be built in at purchase time, and the hack would have to take over your phone to exfiltrate. But if you're worried then get one that has a resistor and only a resistor.
      - stavros 2y ago
        Aren't all these considerations exactly the same as for the cable with the screen?
        Dylan16807 2y ago
        It depends on what kind of attack you're trying to block. If you want to block attacks that use the external data pins, then a USB condom will keep you safe. Regardless of whether it has a chip in it. If you want to block standalone attacks from a malicious cable, then a USB condom wasn't going to help in the first place. For standalone attacks in particular, the risk from a chip-having condom is similar to the risk from a cable, but a cable can use bigger and scarier chips than the one in the PortaPow.
kmoser 2y ago
Assuming you trust that device to not be malicious. It's turtles all the way down.
- transpute 2y ago
  Minimal Portapow for visual verification, https://www.amazon.com/PortaPow-Pure-USB-Data-Blocker/dp/B07W928WRR https://www.amazon.com/PortaPow-Pure-USB-Data-Blocker/dp/B07... Transparent casing, no-chip design and custom made USB connector with data pins visibly removed means you can be sure the blocker is secure.

If power is all you are looking for you can always play it safe with a USB Condom. e.g https://www.amazon.com.au/s?k=PortaPow https://www.amazon.com.au/s?k=PortaPow

stavros 2y ago

Keep in mind that this will limit you to 5V at 0.5A, if I'm not mistaken.

ffsm8 2y ago
And realize that if you're distrustful of the cable, you should be even more distrustful of that gadget which has even more space to add malicious parts and you're still unable to check it.
Dylan16807 2y ago
https://mg.lol/blog/data-blocker-teardown/ https://mg.lol/blog/data-blocker-teardown/ The normal PortaPow tells the device that it's a charger. The extra paranoid version with no components on the board will often limit charging, it depends on how the device treats a complete lack of data pins.
- stavros 2y ago
  Yes, but if you use a data blocker with a microcontroller on it, you've just exchanged one company you need to trust for another.
  - Dylan16807 2y ago
    Not exactly. You now have to trust one entity instead of many, and it's an extremely small chip that can't do much, and the hack would have to be built in at purchase time, and the hack would have to take over your phone to exfiltrate. But if you're worried then get one that has a resistor and only a resistor.
    - stavros 2y ago
      Aren't all these considerations exactly the same as for the cable with the screen?
      - Dylan16807 2y ago
        It depends on what kind of attack you're trying to block. If you want to block attacks that use the external data pins, then a USB condom will keep you safe. Regardless of whether it has a chip in it. If you want to block standalone attacks from a malicious cable, then a USB condom wasn't going to help in the first place. For standalone attacks in particular, the risk from a chip-having condom is similar to the risk from a cable, but a cable can use bigger and scarier chips than the one in the PortaPow.

kmoser 2y ago

Assuming you trust that device to not be malicious. It's turtles all the way down.

transpute 2y ago
Minimal Portapow for visual verification, https://www.amazon.com/PortaPow-Pure-USB-Data-Blocker/dp/B07W928WRR https://www.amazon.com/PortaPow-Pure-USB-Data-Blocker/dp/B07... Transparent casing, no-chip design and custom made USB connector with data pins visibly removed means you can be sure the blocker is secure.