The dangers of QR codes for security

Criminal hackers use malicious QR codes for the same reasons they use any attack on mobile devices: the mobile market is outpacing PCs, creating a bigger target; and, these newer, mostly end-user devices (especially smartphones) are the least likely to carry any security software. A malicious QR (Quick Response) code contains a link to a website embedded with malware. "It doesn t matter how the user scans or collects the QR code, eventually the device translates it to a link," said David Maman, Founder and CTO, GreenSQL, who also speaks at conferences on the dangers of malicious QR codes.