LAFAYETTE, La. (KLFY) – A woman claims to have received a charge from Walmart after scanning a QR code to pay for parking in downtown Lafayette.
Martha Gale’s daughter, Kinly, came to the parking lot in downtown Lafayette near the intersection of Buchanan Street and Garfield Street to park her car and enjoy an event in Parc Lafayette.
She got out her car and walked to a QR code sign to pay. Everything seemed okay until the next morning when she got a large delivery from Walmart that she never bought.
“I see a boat load of merchandise from Walmart, then I checked the app on the cell phone, and it was a purchase for $788 which I did not purchase,” said Gale.
With no other reason for this to happen, Gale believes her credit card information was stolen after her daughter scanned the code on the sign in the parking lot.
“I absolutely think we were scammed,” she said. “That was the last purchase that occurred at the pay lot and then the Sunday morning receiving these products at the door.”
News 10 spoke with the president of Better Business Bureau, Chris Babin, who said this is a scam the organization is familiar with.
“Scammers are trying to use those codes (to) lure consumers into going to websites, submitting payment information and giving their payment information away to scammers,” Babin said.
Babin believes a scammer may have created a QR Code that goes to a website that mirrors one where you would potentially pay for parking or makes it look legitimate.
“You scan the QR code thinking you are paying to park, but you are submitting payment information on a scam website that’s going to a scammer providing them with your card information,” Babin said.
Babin advised if you pay to park, make sure the lot requires payment using a QR code. He also advises people to take an extra minute to look at the website you are sent to before entering your payment information.