Officials warn of QR code scams ahead of holidays

QR scam warning

Jordan Bowen reports

TAMPA, Fla. - Many are expected to travel somewhere this week for the Thanksgiving holiday, and they may use a QR code to scan and find a menu or a website. But, the Pinellas County Sheriff's Office is warning this could open you up to crooks.

Whether you're paying for parking or ordering from a menu, since the pandemic, QR codes have become the norm. According to a study by statistica.com, 72% of people said they scan a QR code at least once a month.

That's a major increase from the 44% who said the same in 2023, and scammers have taken notice.

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"Some crook basically prints out a fake QR code and puts it over top of it. So, you're walking past this bank, you scan it, you think it's good, you think you're downloading a mobile bank app. And again, it's really like email links or anything else. It's a very sophisticated way for hackers to get you," said Anthony Mongeluzo, cybersecurity expert and CEO of the cybersecurity firm PCS.

As Mongeluzo explained, hackers can essentially duplicate the real website and make the fake website look nearly identical, fooling users into instead paying the hackers.

The Pinellas County Sheriff's Office issued a warning this week reminding people to think twice this holiday season before they scan a QR code to pay for something.

"Go directly to the website. Type it in yourself, because then you know you're going to a valid site. The second thing is, we call it the ‘FUD’ – fear, uncertainty and doubt," Mongeluzo said. "When you scan the QR code, and maybe it tells you you need to do something quickly or you have a problem with your accounts locked out, take that moment to pause, breathe and just really inspect things."

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As Mongeluzo explained, to best stay safe, he recommends people freeze their credit with the three main credit bureaus. That way, no one can apply for a credit card in your name without your knowledge.

"There's going to be a lot of scams. It's always that time of year, and it's always going to be a wild one," Mongeluzo said.

Mongeluzo said he's also seen scammers getting creative by putting parking tickets on cars with QR codes for people to scan to pay for the ticket. Like he said, if they ask for money or personal information in a very short time frame, be cautious and go directly to the website to make sure it's legitimate.

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