Motorists nationwide are being warned of a potential scam involving fake QR stickers slapped onto parking meters.
One Irish driver was fleeced out of a whopping €1,000 (£836) after falling prey to a sophisticated swindle at a cashless parking spot.
Instead of paying their parking fee, they were duped into handing over a hefty sum in mere moments, likely giving away personal details to crafty crooks.
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A shocking video shared on a social media platform shows the bogus QR code, a dead ringer for the official one, slapped right over the genuine article.
(Image: (Image: Getty))
In the footage, a gobsmacked woman can be seen fiddling with the sticker and stripping it off, much to the astonishment of bystanders, reports the Express.
They exclaimed: “Oh my God. So then this is probably what happened to you.”
The video uploader, social media user @lozzyloboz, disclosed that the scam unfolded in Greystones, a seaside spot just a stone’s throw from Dublin.
Their post warned: “Be careful everyone, this happened in greystones. The lady’s daughter was scammed out of €1000, using a QR code that she scanned to pay for parking.
“I’d hate to see anyone get scammed like this. It’s getting worse.”
Ex-Top Gear host Quentin Wilson chimed in on the debacle, suggesting that parking operators should cop the blame.
He remarked: “This is happening far too often. Never use QR codes for parking. And what are parking providers doing to stop this fraud? Their machines, their land – surely responsibility to prevent this should be theirs.”
Shocked road users swarmed X to express their anger over the debacle, with a barrage of complaints targeting cashless parking for increasing such episodes.
Twitter user @MrPaulStott lamented: “Never happened in the days you put coins in a machine, or when you handed the money to an old boy in a hut. Technology is not always good news.”
Another tweet from @Fisherfitz1 followed: “Sorry now but Cash is king, it’s about time young people cop on and realise this, get [off] the phone and use cash.”
Yet, this isn’t a one-off incident in the UK; similar deceptions with counterfeit QR codes have surfaced in Fylde, Leicester and Northumberland lately.
Car insurance boffins and the savvy team at RAC have flagged that these dodgy QR stickers are leaving drivers more open to fraudsters’ tricks.
RAC’s top dog for road policy, Simon Williams, has previously said: “As if this quishing scam isn’t nasty enough, it can also lead to drivers being caught out twice if they don’t realise they haven’t paid for parking and end up getting a hefty fine from the council.”
Meanwhile, Payzone has gone into warning mode on its website, telling road users to give those machines a good once-over before coughing up any cash online.
They issued a stark statement: “Payzone is aware of fraudulent activity relating to false QR Code stickers appearing on some pay and display parking meters in the Dublin and Wicklow area. False QR stickers have been overlaid on genuine QR codes which redirect to a fake payment website.
“Payzone has 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.
“Payzone has reported this issue to An Garda Siochana. We are removing any affected signage and have notified customers via our website and on social media channels to be vigilant of false QR codes on pay and display parking meters.
“Our customers’ online safety and security is our highest priority and we urge all customers to remain vigilant when making payments.
“We advise all customers not to scan any QR codes on signage, and to only make payments on the official Payzone website domain, http://www.payzone.ie. Customers can also make payments through the official Payzone App, Parking Tag.
“If customers have been affected by this scam, we recommend that they contact their Bank immediately to cancel their card, email info@payzone.ie with details of the QR code and the URL (website) they were directed to so that we can continue to get these sites taken down. They should also report the incident to An Garda Siochana.”
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