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I already have “USB drives I didn’t buy” on the list of things not to plug in to my computer. It’s easy enough to add “cables I didn’t buy” to that list.
> In my experience public charging stations don't have cables, only sockets, but yeah, leaving a hanging cable there is sure to catch a few people.

You can use USB write blockers for charging only, I always have one with me if I want to connect to an unknown USB plug

Imagine these being swapped out for the normal cables at an airport or mall "charging" station .. hundreds of people using those cables every day for charging .. all easily compromised..
In my experience public charging stations don't have cables, only sockets, but yeah, leaving a hanging cable there is sure to catch a few people.

Now that I think of it, the charging sockets themselves on airport benches or on the dedicated desks could also be compromised easily. Is there a way to detect something fishy is happening?

Since the implant can be reached remotely another attack would be simply to passively collect the data being transferred between a laptop and an external device.

You didn’t read the article. This isn’t an iPhone exploit. It only affects the computer.