Irish motorists urged to beware of fake QR codes being used on parking meters in new 'quishing' scams

LAST UPDATE | 34 mins ago

A VIDEO RELEASED by Fingal County Council has warned members of the public about a scam involving fake QR codes on public parking meters.

The video, which was recorded by a council employee in Malahide, Co Dublin, showed two stickers which had been placed on the machine. One was put on the front, while the other was placed over the legitimate QR code on the side of the machine.

The scamming method, called quishing, involves tricking people into scanning a QR code believing it to be legitimate.

When the scanned, the codes direct to a fake website, which requests credit card details and other personal data. The council said that the matter has been referred to the Gardaí.

Payzone, who run the meters on behalf of councils, hasalso referred the matter to Gardaí, according to a spokesperson.

They also said that they have engaged with an IT company “who has been successful in swiftly shutting down these fraudulent websites where we have been made aware of specific cases”.

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The Journal has has asked An Garda Síochána for comment.

A similar video was recorded yesterday in Greystones, Co Wicklow.

A spokesperson for Wicklow County Council said they were “recently made aware of a QR code scam on Pay and Display Machines in the County, where a bogus QR sticker was placed on some machines and Payzone signage”.

“This QR code sticker brings the user to a fraudulent cloned website which requests credit card details and other personal data. We have reported this to An Garda Síochána and Payzone,” they said.

“All pay and display machines in the Bray, Arklow, Greystones and Wicklow Municipal Districts have been checked, and any bogus QR codes on these machines have been removed.

“As a precaution, Wicklow County Council are advising all users not to scan any QR codes or bar codes that may appear on Pay and Display machines or Payzone signage,” they said.

Fingal County Council is also urging members to pay for parking using the Payzone app, rather than via QR codes on parking meters.

Similar incidents have been reported recently in both the UK and United States. A number of councils in the UK say they have been contacted about fake codes on their meters, while victims have also reported being caught in the US states of Florida, Georgia, and California.

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