Anker is a popular manufacturer of accessories for smartphones and laptops. But now the company has recalled one of its power banks. These can overheat and pose a fire risk.
Affected by the problem is the Anker Powerbank 535 (PowerCore 20K) A1366, which has an output of 30 watts and can even charge laptops with it. The model is offered in several colors. However, a manufacturing error apparently means that the power bank can overheat and burst into flames. Anker has therefore started a voluntary recall, as the company announced via Twitter, among other things.
How to identify affected Anker power banks
In the Twitter post, Anker refers to a specially switched one website, via which owners of the Powerbank 535 can inform about the recall and how to proceed. Whether a model is affected can be seen from the printed model number A1366 on the back of the power bank. Although Anker only speaks of a small number of faulty models, users should no longer use the power banks. However, the devices should not be disposed of in the rubbish bin or recycling bin. Instead, the manufacturer advises keeping them in a safe place.
In order for customers to be reimbursed for the purchase price for the defective Anker power bank, they must enter a Form fill out. Here the manufacturer asks for personal data such as name and address, but also requests information about the device and its date of purchase. Owners must also upload the invoice at this point. If you have further questions about the recall process, Anker offers various contact options, but recommends sending an email to customer service with the subject “535 Power Bank Recall / Rückruf”.
Even cameras from Eufy with problems
Anker owns various sub-brands such as Eufy, which mainly offers products for home networking. A while ago, however, it became known that the image transmissions from the security cameras were not fully encrypted. As early as November, a security researcher pointed out the lack of security in the Eufy cameras. According to him, the images were not stored locally on the device, despite the appropriate setting, but were loaded unencrypted on a server.
Anker initially denied the allegations as “speculative”, but later showed understanding. Last week, Anker told the tech portal, “The Verge‘ admitted that Eufy’s security cameras uploaded videos to the cloud. The upload was unencrypted, but the retrieval on the smartphone or website was encrypted. Anker would like to fix the error with an update. In addition, they want to carry out a security check by external experts in order to be able to rule out possible further security gaps.