Scammers have launched a new wave of mailings on behalf of government agencies. Recipients are offered to open documents about an upcoming inspection using a QR code, and then pay for allegedly necessary postal services. In September, Kaspersky Lab specialists blocked more than 800 such messages.
Letters arrive at employees' corporate addresses. They may report an upcoming control event, and information about the inspection and contact details of the official are allegedly in the attached document. To access it, they are offered to scan a QR code.
After scanning, a fake website opens, similar to a postal tracking service. The page indicates that the shipment is awaiting payment. The user is offered to enter banking card details to make the payment.
Kaspersky Lab already described a similar scheme in the spring. At that time, specialists noted that attackers use QR codes in letters on behalf of government agencies and send victims to fake postal service pages.
Thus, attackers can not only receive a transfer, but also gain possession of the user's payment data.
In the summer, Rospotrebnadzor warned about a similar mailing. Organizations and individual entrepreneurs received notifications about allegedly unscheduled inspections with a QR code and an offer to pay for postal services. The agency stated that such letters have no relation to real inspections.
Information security specialists recommend not scanning QR codes from unexpected letters and checking information about inspections through official government websites. For paying for services, it is also worth independently opening the website of the relevant organization, rather than following a link from a letter.
