Computer-killing USB drives now on sale for less than $60

[vellavu]

Computer-killing USB drives now on sale for less than $60 | ExtremeTech
It sounds like something out of a B-grade Hollywood plot — a flash drive that you plug into a computer and is capable of destroying it within seconds. Last year, hacker Dark Purple disclosed a USB flash drive designed to fry a modern system as soon as you plug it in. The drive works by discharging -220V through the USB port.

The exact details on how the drive functioned weren’t immediately released. But there’s now a Hong Kong-based company selling a USB Kill Drive 2.0 for just $50.

At the same time, however, studies have shown that up to 50% of people will cheerfully plug in a USB drive they found on the ground without taking precautions for what kind of data or malware might be on the drive. If the USB Kill 2.0 is actually shipping in volume, it’s probably a good idea to revisit that tendency — or at least keep an old computer around for testing.

 

[white avenger]

Has anyone notified Hillary Clinton about this? That would explain what happened to her. I hear she's been having trouble with her email lately. Thousands of her documents just went "poof" at a very critical time. Probably a Trump/NRA infiltrator was responsible.

 

[AndrewCrossett]

Wow, that turned political fast.

So I guess the point of this thing is for practical jokes? Leave it sitting around on the ground for someone to find... chump picks it up, says "hey! maybe it's porn!" and takes it home, plugs it in, and D'OH! It operates on the same principle as Jack Chick tracts... nobody can resist picking up a comic book they find lying on the ground.

Or is it for disgruntled employees to trash their company's computers on the way out the door? Or for everyday citizens to pretend they're high-level spies?

 

[HowiMetdaSlayer]

Maybe paranoid types not wanting anyone to see all the stuff they've downloaded? 😕

 

[white avenger]

So I guess the point of this thing is for practical jokes?

If so, it's a pretty malicious joke, considering the potential loss of valuable, often irreplaceable, records

 

[AndrewCrossett]

Well, I have a hard time seeing any use for this object which isn't malicious.

 

[HowiMetdaSlayer]

If I read correctly this pretty much fries yer computer. So loss of records would be the least of yer worries.