Quick Response Code Secure: A Cryptographically Secure Anti-Phishing Tool for QR Code Attacks

The two-dimensional quick response (QR) codes can be misleading due to the difficulty in differentiating a genuine QR code from a malicious one. Since the vulnerability is practically part of their design, scanning a malicious QR code can direct the user to cloned malicious sites resulting in revealing sensitive information. In order to evaluate the vulnerabilities and propose subsequent countermeasures, we demonstrate this type of attack through a simulated experiment, where a malicious QR code directs a user to a phishing site. For our experiment, we cloned Google’s web page providing access to their email service (Gmail). Since the URL is masqueraded into the QR code, the unsuspecting user who opens the URL is directed to the malicious site. Our results proved that hackers could easily leverage QR codes into phishing attack vectors targeted at smartphone users, even bypassing web browsers’ safe browsing feature. In addition, the second part of our paper presents adequate countermeasures and introduces QRCS (Quick Response Code Secure). QRCS is a universal efficient and effective solution focusing exclusively on the authenticity of the originator and consequently the integrity of QR code by using digital signatures.