The Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI) warned Americans this week that cybercriminals are using maliciously crafted Quick Response (QR) codes to steal their credentials and financial info.
The warning was issued as a public service announcement (PSA) published on the Bureau's Internet Crime Complaint Center (IC3) earlier this week.
"Cybercriminals are tampering with QR codes to redirect victims to malicious sites that steal login and financial information," the federal law enforcement agency said.
The FBI said crooks are switching legitimate QR codes used by businesses for payment purposes to redirect potential victims to malicious websites designed to steal their personal and financial information, install malware on their devices, or divert their payments to accounts under their control.
After the victims scan what looks like legitimate codes, they get sent to attackers' phishing sites, where they are prompted to enter their login and financial info. Once entered, it gets sent to the cybercriminals who can use it to steal money using hijacked banking accounts.
"While QR codes are not malicious in nature, it is important to practice caution when entering financial information as well as providing payment through a site navigated to through a QR code," the FBI
added. "Law enforcement cannot guarantee the recovery of lost funds after transfer."
