How to Check a QR Code Before You Open It
You cannot tell by looking at a QR code where it leads. Criminals stick fake codes over real ones on parking meters, posters and menus, or send them in emails, because people open the link without thinking.
Steps
- Read the code without opening it. Use the QR reader and give it a picture or let it use your camera. It shows the content as text and does not open it.
- Look at the domain. Read the part of the address before the first single slash. A bank link should end with the real bank domain, not a longer name that only contains it.
- Be careful with short links. A shortened link hides its target. If you do not trust the source, do not open it.
- Decide. If the code asks you to log in, pay or install something, go to the official site by typing its address yourself.
Good to know
A code that sits on a sticker over another one is a warning sign. In public places, check that it has not been stuck on top.
Payment codes and Wi-Fi codes do more than open a page. Make sure you know who made them.
The reader works inside your browser, and the picture or camera frame is not sent anywhere.