A Hong Kong-based hardware hacking company recently unveiled a tool that can essentially render a computer completely useless in just a matter of seconds. Dubbed only as USBKill 2.0, the miniature USB tool can destroy a computer by emitting high electrical voltage through when inserted into the computer's USB port.
The USBKill 2.0 tool is based on the prototype invented by Russian security researcher known only as Dark Purple way back in 2015. The idea behind the USBKill toll is to transmit 200 volts of DC charge over the computer's data lines. When this process is repeated multiple times over a span of a single second, it can cause the controllers of the PC's hard drives to be damaged to a point that they the data stored within cannot be retrieved at all, according to Inverse.
Despite the rather suspicious intention why the USBKill tool was created, its creators say that the tool serves one important purpose and that is to test computers for surge protection. A single USBKill 2.0 tool can be purchased for only $56. A Test Shield, which costs $16, can also be purchased separately and it can be used to test USBKill on computers without compromising them. Users who purchase the USBKill 2.0 tool and the Test Shield will receive a discount according to the manufacturer.
USBKill 2.0 was released in mid-August and since then the tool has become so popular to a point that the manufacturer cannot keep up with demands. As of this writing, the tool is out of stock. The company responsible for manufacturing the tool said that a new batch will arrive on Sept. 14.
According to International Business Times, the current generation of Apple MacBooks are the only machines that are susceptible to the damages brought by USBKill 2.0. MacBooks are impervious to the tool since its design isolates data lines on its USB ports.
