Rant: That "free" USB drive I got at a conference in 2019 nuked my work laptop

I picked up a free USB drive at a trade show in Chicago back in 2019. Looked legit, had the company logo on it. Plugged it into my work laptop to check a file. Instant blue screen of death. IT told me later it had a bad firmware that installed keylogging software. Cost my company $1200 to replace the hard drive and reset everything. I got a written warning for plugging in unknown devices. Now I tell everyone: those free drives at events are like accepting candy from strangers. They might look cool but they can destroy your system. Has anyone else had a scare from a random USB?

3 comments

3 Comments

karenb971mo ago

Always check with your IT team before plugging in anything from a conference, most companies have policies for a reason. If you absolutely have to use a random USB, boot from a live Linux disc first to inspect the files without touching your main OS. Trust me, that $1200 lesson taught me to keep a cheap burner laptop for situations like this.

nguyen.angela1mo ago

Wait, was it actually a USB drive or did it just look like one?

keith_bennett1mo ago

Read about BadUSB attacks a few years back, scary how a drive can look totally normal but fry everything.