QR codes
Fraudulent speeding tickets: Even the police warn about these speeding tickets
You should take a closer look at certain traffic tickets in the future – because fraudsters take advantage of customers’ willingness to pay.
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The Berlin police warn of a new type of fraud. Unknown people stick authentic-looking parking tickets on the windows of alleged illegal parkers and hope that the transfer will be uncritical.
It’s a familiar scenario: you’ve parked in a strange city and when you return to the car a piece of paper smiles at you from afar – you’ve been caught. It has become common practice among drivers to pay the fines without comment. What do you want to make big? This is exactly what fraudsters know – but the police warn everyone against being too naïve Comply with traffic tickets immediately.
Conspicuous traffic tickets with strange sentences
The Berlin police wrote on They were distributed in large numbers in Marzahn last night. Our colleagues from the A32 have already driven several blocks to collect them.”
What is shown is a speeding ticket that initially appears real. It has the logo of the Berlin Police, the correct address of the traffic department and no particularly noticeable spelling errors – at least in the first part. But after that things get a little strange. Sentences like “There was a fine of: 25 euros”, “Notice of violation: illegal parking” or “Signature of a police officer” would hardly appear on a real traffic ticket. The email address provided, which belongs to the Nürtingen police station in Baden-Württemberg, would never be used in letters from the Berlin police.
However, the fraudsters rely on no one paying too much attention to the print – and distract from the textual work. In the middle of the ticket you can see a huge QR code, which, according to Berlin police, leads to a portal through which you can transfer money. In their brief warning about the notes, the officials do not say which service provider the payment will be processed through or who the money will go to.
Real tickets also come by post
If the method proves to be a lucrative source of income for the fraudsters, it cannot be ruled out that the false traffic tickets will quickly leave Berlin’s borders and spread rapidly to other cities. It’s always worth taking a second look at a ticket.
If checking the notes on the window is too time-consuming for you, you can simply wait – because real traffic tickets always arrive by post at a later date.