This fake iPhone charging cable will hijack your computer

When plugged into a Linux, Mac or Windows computer, and connected via Wi-Fi, the Cable can give a hacker full control over the system, allowing them to carry out commands remotely.

Attack:
"It looks like a legitimate cable and works just like one. Not even your computer will notice a difference. Until I, as an attacker, wirelessly take control of the cable," he told Motherboard.

The cable takes advantage of a flaw in the computer's operating system that detects the cable as part of an input device, or what’s known as a human interface device (HID).

Once connected via the IP address of the cable, hackers can start to issue commands using a mouse and keyboard, as operating systems consider HID devices to be input devices. This allows them to manouevre around the hijacked device, download malware or open up software such as browsers to run malicious payloads.

The cable, which fortunately is only a prototype, could be utilised in a number of additional ways by criminals, allowing them to download and launch malware, remove devices from Wi-Fi networks, and even reconfigure systems.