Criminals hijack China's public QR codes, sending users to porn and scams

Public QR codes are widely used across Chinese cities for payments and information. Recent reports show criminals have taken control of many of these codes. The compromised codes redirect scanners to pornographic websites. Some redirects also lead to fraudulent scam pages. Users scanning the codes unwittingly encounter unwanted content. The hijacking undermines trust in QR code infrastructure. Authorities are investigating the scale of the intrusion. Security experts warn of increased risk for QR code users. Ongoing efforts aim to secure QR code deployments and prevent further abuse.