Chances are that each of us has found ourselves in a situation where our phone is dying and we have no charger on hand, but at the same time we desperately need to stay connected \u2014 to answer an important call, receive a text message or email, whatever.<\/p>\n
It is perfectly normal to look for any source of precious electricity on such occasion \u2014 any USB port would do. But is it safe? No. In fact, it can be dangerous: Over a USB connection someone can steal your files, infect your smartphone with something nasty \u2014 or even brick it.<\/p>\n
Before we get to the problem of thieves, we must point out that not all electricity is equally good for your phone. The Internet is full of complaints, filed mostly by users who tried to charge their fancy phones by connecting them to aftermarket (or non-original) chargers. In some cases doing so turned the phones into quite expensive bricks. In the most bizarre cases, people holding the phone in their hands were seriously injured or even killed<\/a>.<\/p>\n Teen dies after being electrocuted in her sleep while charging her iPhone http:\/\/t.co\/1YyPVHOhN0<\/a><\/p>\n \u2014 Daily Mail Online (@MailOnline) July 31, 2014<\/a><\/p><\/blockquote>\n\n