KEY POINTS
Almost three-quarters of Americans (73%) scan QR codes without verification, and more than 26 million have already been directed to malicious sites, according to NordVPN.
The FTC warned earlier this year about scanning QR codes on unexpected packages.
New York City’s Department of Transportation issued a warning that scammers are posting QR codes on parking meters that are not legitimate payment links.
I’m confused, isn’t this just as risky as seeing a URL in the wild and typing it into your phone? Don’t all phones display the URL you are about to visit?
The problem isn’t the QR code itself, correct? It’s a lack of education, and an incurious public that has no interest in learning about the technology that they depend on.
Seems like a skill issue.
No, because phones don’t show the URL you are going to. I can go to a restaurant and scan the menu, but the link that it shows me is “qrl.io/asccand…” because A) the restaurant used a URL shortener, and B) the phone truncates the URL to fit in the space.
I scan some legit QR codes and the URL preview is nonsense, because everyone uses link shortners and whatnot. I also don’t scan random QR codes because I don’t need any more information right now, I’m informationed out.