Motorists Alerted to Deceptive QR Code Parking Ticket Scheme

Motorists are being cautioned about fraudulent parking violation notifications that include counterfeit QR codes. Coventry City Council has indicated that it has received accounts of bogus penalty charge notices circulating within the city. These deceptive QR codes, intended for payment, were created to mislead drivers into inputting their banking information onto fraudulent websites, according to the council. Genuine parking fines should be settled by drivers through the council’s official website, by telephone, or personally at their customer service facility. A comparable fraudulent scheme has been reported in recent months across multiple towns and cities, including Telford, Reading, and Southampton, involving counterfeit QR codes affixed to parking meters. Furthermore, in September, the Driver and Vehicle Standards Agency released an alert concerning fraudsters dispatching text messages regarding bogus parking penalties, prompting recipients to select a link and provide their personal information. Coventry City Council advised that individuals encountering a fraudulent QR code or a website they suspect to be deceptive should report it to the National Cyber Security Centre. Follow BBC Coventry & Warwickshire on BBC Sounds, Facebook, X and Instagram. Copyright 2024 BBC. All rights reserved. The BBC is not responsible for the content of external sites. Read about our approach to external linking.