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USB Killer

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Re: USB Killer

#61

Post by Accacin »

MrBuddyCasino wrote: post #51
philjohn wrote: post #44

Earlier quoted context omitted.

They're ugly as hell, and insanely painful if you tread on them, but UK plugs are a bastion of good engineering. Things like not being able to stick things into the line/neutral holes unless the ground pin (which is longer) is inserted make them very safe, and the plastic lower part of the line/neutral pins to stop you accidentally touching something that will have current running through it until the plug is safely…

I know Britons love their plugs, and I have never quite understood why. They look brutish, clunky and over-engineered. The opposite of elegant. The reason why they have fuses is so you can use ring circuits, which saves copper compared to the usual radial wiring. So its just about saving a little money. Everyone now gets to state his favourite plug type. Bring it on! Mine is the swiss Type J ( http://www.worldstandar…

I'm not really a plug fan, but I did find this interesting! https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=UEfP1OKKz_Q

Re: USB Killer

#62

Post by vacri »

MichaelGG wrote: post #6
lisper wrote: post #2

This is so not cool.

Why? Sounds like a way to increase security awareness. Although, I suppose a huge blaring alarm might do just as well. Leave them around your office/parking lot and see who uses them. Then have a chat. Better they plug in a bad device you control vs one carrying a truly malicious payload. (Probably a good idea to attempt to phish employees, too.)

"Oh, look, someone lost a usb stick. Perhaps I can return it to them if I can identify something on it. Oh, it's just done over a thousand dollars damage to me, plus destroyed everything I have done on this computer". I've not found a lost USB stick, but I have found lost wallets and returned them. Thank god they weren't trapped because some dickhead thought it was a good way to 'teach the public in general a lesson'.

Besides, pretty much anything can be characterised as "a way" to increase security awareness, up to and including murder of the victim. The victim's friends and family will be a lot more wary of whatever did the murder - the goal of 'security awareness' has been increased. But "a way" is not the same as "a good way".

Re: USB Killer

#63

Post by swombat »

vertex-four wrote: post #54
MrBuddyCasino wrote: post #51

Earlier quoted context omitted.

I know Britons love their plugs, and I have never quite understood why. They look brutish, clunky and over-engineered. The opposite of elegant. The reason why they have fuses is so you can use ring circuits, which saves copper compared to the usual radial wiring. So its just about saving a little money. Everyone now gets to state his favourite plug type. Bring it on! Mine is the swiss Type J ( http://www.worldstandar…

Does anyone actually care that their plugs are elegant? In any case, your Type J is missing the fact that in the UK, the cables point down towards the floor rather than sticking out, keeping them flush with the wall and often allowing you to hide the plugs behind things.

Swiss person here. The total length of the "plug" part of a swiss plug is actually roundabout the same as the width of a british plug. They fit just fine behind couches, shelves, etc.

Re: USB Killer

#64

Post by 72deluxe »

__david__ wrote: post #19

Reminds me of one my favorite "Bastard Operator From Hell" stories: http://www.chinet.com/html/bofh/tradeshow.html Turns out this is a very old idea. :-)

Haha very witty. Such a cynical outlook on life and people in that article.

Re: USB Killer

#65

Post by lucian1900 »

philjohn wrote: post #44
twelvechairs wrote: post #41

Earlier quoted context omitted.

UK power plugs also require a fuse, which I believe is not mandatory anywhere else.

They're ugly as hell, and insanely painful if you tread on them, but UK plugs are a bastion of good engineering. Things like not being able to stick things into the line/neutral holes unless the ground pin (which is longer) is inserted make them very safe, and the plastic lower part of the line/neutral pins to stop you accidentally touching something that will have current running through it until the plug is safely…

They are however no safer than Schuko plugs, which are significantly less annoying.

Re: USB Killer

#66

Post by [deleted] »

witten wrote: post #11

I once encountered a computer that was the opposite of this; plug any USB device into it, and the device would never work again, even in another computer.

[deleted]

Re: USB Killer

#67

Post by [deleted] »

lawnchair_larry wrote: post #13
MichaelGG wrote: post #6

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Why? Sounds like a way to increase security awareness. Although, I suppose a huge blaring alarm might do just as well. Leave them around your office/parking lot and see who uses them. Then have a chat. Better they plug in a bad device you control vs one carrying a truly malicious payload. (Probably a good idea to attempt to phish employees, too.)

Yeah, and randomly hitting people in the head with a bat is a great way to increase concussion awareness, right?

[deleted]

Re: USB Killer

#68

Post by cesarb »

witten wrote: post #11

I once encountered a computer that was the opposite of this; plug any USB device into it, and the device would never work again, even in another computer.

At work, I encountered a HD which fried SATA ports. If you plugged that HD in a SATA port of another computer, that SATA port didn't work anymore. I don't know if the HD had been damaged by the computer it was originally from, but we didn't use both that HD and that computer anymore.

There have been other stories of "contagious" hardware damage in the past, like the infamous ZIP drive "click of death", but that HD is the first one I've seen personally.

Re: USB Killer

#69

Post by kagamine »

MrBuddyCasino wrote: post #51
philjohn wrote: post #44

Earlier quoted context omitted.

They're ugly as hell, and insanely painful if you tread on them, but UK plugs are a bastion of good engineering. Things like not being able to stick things into the line/neutral holes unless the ground pin (which is longer) is inserted make them very safe, and the plastic lower part of the line/neutral pins to stop you accidentally touching something that will have current running through it until the plug is safely…

I know Britons love their plugs, and I have never quite understood why. They look brutish, clunky and over-engineered. The opposite of elegant. The reason why they have fuses is so you can use ring circuits, which saves copper compared to the usual radial wiring. So its just about saving a little money. Everyone now gets to state his favourite plug type. Bring it on! Mine is the swiss Type J ( http://www.worldstandar…

Norwegian plugs must be the UK plug's arch enemy, not grounded until the very last, 2 pins (the ground is on either side of the casing) and the sockets are at 0, 45 or 90 degrees (leading directly to exclamations of "Fuuck!" from this Brit.

Re: USB Killer

#70

Post by TheSpiceIsLife »

asdfaoeu wrote: post #45
philjohn wrote: post #44

Earlier quoted context omitted.

They're ugly as hell, and insanely painful if you tread on them, but UK plugs are a bastion of good engineering. Things like not being able to stick things into the line/neutral holes unless the ground pin (which is longer) is inserted make them very safe, and the plastic lower part of the line/neutral pins to stop you accidentally touching something that will have current running through it until the plug is safely…

> Things like not being able to stick things into the line/neutral holes unless the ground pin (which is longer) is inserted make them very safe, and the plastic lower part of the line/neutral pins to stop you accidentally touching something that will have current running through it until the plug is safely inserted is inspired. Same in Australia, of course you can still go off an buy and Apple Laptop charger with no…

I don't know why you singled out the MacBook charger.

The relevant Australian Standard (AS/NZ 3820, I think?) tells you an electrical appliance doesn't need to have an earth pin if it's double insulated, which the MacBook charger, and the stick blender in my kitchen, amongst others, are.

Source: I'm certified for Electrical Test & Tag in Australia.

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