Know what a QR code does before your phone does it
A QR code is just a short piece of text, but a phone acts on it straight away: it opens a website, joins a Wi-Fi network, starts a payment or prepares a text message. Fake QR stickers on parking meters, restaurant tables and posters ("quishing") send people to look-alike payment pages. Open a photo or screenshot of the code here to see exactly what it contains first.
What it shows
- Web links: the real domain in large type, a check for look-alike domains, link shorteners that hide the destination, and tracking tags.
- Wi-Fi: network name, security type and password (hidden until you ask).
- 2FA setup codes: a clear warning, because anyone who scans one can make your login codes.
- Payments: crypto and UPI addresses and amounts to check before you pay.
- Contacts, events, email, phone and text messages: every field, before your phone fills anything in.
Questions
Is the image uploaded?
No. The code is read in your browser with the open-source jsQR library (or your browser's built-in reader). Links are never opened unless you press "Open anyway".
It says no QR code was found.
Take the photo closer, straight on, with the whole square visible and in focus. Very small or damaged codes may not read.