TSA Just Issued a Stern Warning to Missouri Airline Travelers

I'm curious about the timing of this warning. The TSA has just shared what appears to be a very stern warning about what Missouri travelers should and shouldn't do when they're flying. Their warnings should be heeded no matter when or where you travel.

The Transportation Safety Administration (or TSA as the cool kids say) just shared this status update on their Facebook page. For the record, I double-checked to make sure this is their official page and not a clone or knockoff. Here are their 2 warnings that everyone who flies out of Missouri (or anywhere) should pay attention to:

• "Hackers can install malware at USB ports (we’ve been told that’s called “juice/port jacking”). So, when you’re at an airport do not plug your phone directly into a USB port. Bring your TSA-compliant power brick or battery pack and plug in there."
• "Don’t use free public WiFi, especially if you’re planning to make any online purchases. Do not ever enter any sensitive info while using unsecure WiFi."

Not to be a critic, but there is no such thing as "unsecure WiFi". What they're trying to say is don't use an WiFi that isn't on a secure connection.

I've flown out of St. Louis Lambert Field International Airport too many times in my life and I wouldn't touch the USB ports they have available for anything. Best thing you can do is travel with a TSA-compliant power brick and charge it in the terminal without your device being plugged into it. Use your own phone's built-in hotspot and never trust public WiFi.

Since I specialize in paranoia, I also don't like using the WiFi they let you pay for on flights out of St. Louis either. Assume there are bad guys trying to steal your information at every turn and you'll probably be right.