As we’ve become more familiar with seeing QR codes on just about everything, we’ve gained trust in the scanning system. And scammers are taking advantage of that.
“The scammers, they are the only criminals we refer to as artists. And they always know what people are interested in or what’s current they’re going try to manipulate that,” Steven Weisman said.
Weisman tracks scams as the editor of Scamicide.com. He is also a lawyer, and a professor at Bentley University.
The Better Business Bureau and Tennessee Attorney General’s Office recently released warnings about QR code fraud.
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We asked Weisman why this is becoming more prevalent.
“Part of the problem is AI. Artificial intelligence has made it so easy to create websites and emails that look so legitimate,” he said.
Weisman said, “They’re going to be able to put up a website that looks perfect. You go to it from the QR code, and you have no reason to think anything different and you give them your information or even nearly clicking will download malware.”
NBC CT Responds
Weisman said he’s hearing more and more reports of imposter messages sent to consumers that demand a swift payment, perhaps to the IRS or police, that includes a QR code to use for payment.
The IRS or police will never do this.
NBC CT Responds has heard recent reports of parking QR code scams in a California town where a malicious sticker covers the actual payment QR code.
The scammer then sends consumers to a copycat website to steal their credit card information.
A social media video making the rounds warns of spoofed packages from your favorite company sent to you, only to be opened to find a misleading QR code directing you to a sign-in page so bad actors can steal your username, password and personal information.
The best advice is not to trust any unsolicited QR codes. Instead, go to the original source of information by manually typing in a website or calling the company.
Check for tampering with a sticker. And keep your phone’s operating system up to date to protect against any potential malware threats.
