Commonly, hackers attack computers by executing malicious code via USB. In fact, it is possible to carry out this type of attacks even without accessing the user’s account, which is quite dangerous if we leave the computer unattended. In order to avoid such attacks, Google is working on a new feature for Chrome OS.
As echoed from Chrome Story, Chrome OS will soon have a feature called USBGuard, which aims to prevent the operating system from executing the USB device code while the computer is locked. This way, if someone connects a USB device while the Chromebook is locked, you can not take any action. Even so, we will have the possibility to avoid this blockage in certain devices.
The function we are talking about is already available in one of the most recent builds of Canary Chrome, so it should not take long to be available for other users. Of course, USB-connected devices before locking the Chromebook will continue to work, thus preventing a data transfer from being stopped or for an external device to stop working.
At this point, we take the opportunity to emphasize that it is not the only company to implement this function. In fact, Apple introduced a few months ago a feature in iOS that blocks USB activity when the device has been blocked for more than an hour.
As always, we will remain vigilant until Google implements the function that we speak of officially. Let us see what Chrome will offer in the next update.