Look out for malicious QR codes
Posted October 26, 2011 6:56 am.
This article is more than 5 years old.
VANCOUVER (NEWS1130) – Online scammers have found a new way to trick you out of your hard-earned cash. QR codes are being used to rip off smartphone users.
The first malicious one were discovered in late September by the Internet security firm Kaspersky labs; the codes were used to siphon dollars out of the accounts of people who scanned them. Richard Rosenberg, a UBC Professor Emeritus of Computer Science, isn’t entirely surprised:
“With this new coding system, it looks on the surface that it’s improving security — and for the most part it does. But there is no chance that it will avoid the scrutiny of criminals who have the computer skills to break the codes and to get access to whatever they’re trying to protect.”
He adds it’s yet another reason to be careful. “This is a security system that offers better security than barcodes, the traditional means of coding, but it still requires you to be careful on how it’s used and who has access to it.”
Experts predict we’ll see even more of these crooked codes since they’re easy to set up and most people never suspect them. Marketers are also being put on notice, as it’s very difficult to tell a fake from the real thing.
