The Evolution of QR Code Phishing—And Why You Could Be the Next Target

Imagine starting your day by checking emails, and you spot one with a QR code. Maybe it’s a special discount or an event invite. Without thinking, you grab your phone and scan it—easy, right? But what if that seemingly innocent scan just opened the door to a dangerous phishing attack?

Introducing Quishing: QR Code Phishing Reinvented

The latest wave in phishing attacks isn’t your standard scam. Known as "quishing," this method manipulates QR codes in ways that are hard to detect, even for advanced security software.

According to Barracuda, cybercriminals have perfected tactics that evade traditional defenses, making quishing an increasingly sneaky threat.

While older QR code scams embedded direct links to malicious sites, modern quishing uses codes made from ASCII characters or Blob URIs. These codes can trick even sophisticated detection tools, appearing legitimate to the untrained eye or automated systems.

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How Quishing Slips Through the Cracks

1. Old-School     vs. New Tactics: Previously, attackers would     hide malicious URLs in QR code images. Security software could catch these     threats with image scanning. Today, quishing uses encoded characters that     traditional tools struggle to detect.
2. The     Blob URI Technique: Hackers also employ Binary     Large Object (Blob) URIs, which allow for dynamic phishing pages. These     aren't hosted on a static URL, making them nearly impossible to block or     track in real time.

Could You Be the Next Victim?

In 2023, Barracuda's research found that 1in 20 mailboxes encountered QR code phishing attacks in the final quarter alone. This means if you got 100 emails recently, five could have contained dangerous QR codes—and with quishing on the rise, those odds may only get worse.

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How to Protect Yourself

•        Educate Your Team: Make sure everyone knows about quishing and can spot suspicious QR codes.

•        Use Advanced Security: Implement AI-based detection tools that recognize quishing tactics.

•        Verify Before Scanning: Don't scan any QR code from an unverified email.

•        Stay Updated: Keep software and security tools current to combat evolving threats.

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