Police force warn of rise in QR code fraud

Police said there had been a "steep rise" in the use of QR codes since the pandemic

A police force has warned people to be aware of QR code fraud after seeing an increase in the crime in its area.

Greater Manchester Police said there had been a "steep rise" in the use of the barcodes, which offer mobile phone users a quick way of accessing a website, since the pandemic and criminals were using them as a "new way to defraud people".

It said it had recorded three uses of fake QR codes in the last week alone.

A force representative said the fraud was "more likely to happen in open spaces, such as car parks or parking meters" and warned people to be careful when using them.

They said fraudsters often put "a fake QR code sticker over a real QR code on a parking meter" and urged people to check for tampered stickers when using any such codes in public spaces.

"The fake QR code will take users to a genuine looking payment site to steal personal information and in some instances financial information," they said.

"If something doesn’t look right and the sticker looks out of place, type in the URL manually to ensure you are getting to the correct website."

They added that anyone felt they or someone they know has been a victim of fraud, they should report it to Action Fraud, the UK's national reporting centre for fraud and cyber crime.