Malware discovered on imported e-cigarettes

While many are turning to e-cigarettes as a healthier alternative to traditional cigarette, at least one case has shown that you have to be careful where you buy your electronic cigarettes. Neowin spreads the story of an executive at an unnamed large corporation who caused a malware infection after plugging his $5 e-cigarette into his computer's USB port. The cheap, no-brand e-cigarette was bought via eBay and was found to contain malware that automatically infected the system, which had anti-virus and anti-malware programs in place.

And that was the answer they were looking for, the "made in China" $5 e-cigarette purchased on eBay also came with malware loaded in the charger. The moment the executive plugged it into his workstation the malware copied itself to the computer, called home and infected the system.

If you think this sounds absurd, don't be fooled, as Security Affairs puts it, although they were unable to verify the authenticity of the report on Reddit, "Despite the (fact the) idea could appear hilarious, many electronic cigarettes can be charged over USB using a special cable or by inserting one end of the cigarette directly into a USB port." it has been known to happen with battery chargers as well as USB powered photo frames.