The Lidl brand is recalling all stocks of a brand of children’s biscuits. Following a hack, the QR codes present on the packages land on pornographic sites.
It’s a marketing method more and more widespread, with which you must have been confronted at least once. On the products you buy during your shopping there is sometimes a QR code. By scanning it, you are sent to a website to participate in a contest or see the other articles of the brand, for example. As a rule, we don’t even care.
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Products labeled “for children” are a prime target for this kind of practice. Often the toddler will have the pleasure of falling on a site full of mini-gamesand of advertising Of course. But what happens when the QR code is diverted from its original function? Some purchasers of cookies derived from Paw Patrol animated series have paid the price. By scanning the QR code present on the packages, they landed on a site displaying pornographic content.
Paw Patrol brand cookies recalled following hacking of their QR code
The incident is happening in the UK and involves 4 types of Paw Patrol cookies. The sign lidl issued a recall request for the affected items, recommending that do not go to the website given by the QR code. The latter was obviously hacked, although no details were given as to the origin of the maneuver. The URL in question is appykidsco.com. At the time of writing these lines, it returns on computer to a blank page showing an error message in Chinese.
? URGENT RECALL: Four types of Paw Patrol snacks are being recalled by Lidl after a website URL listed on the back of the packaging was compromised with explicit content unsuitable for children.
Customers should return the products to their nearest Lidl store for a full refund. pic.twitter.com/oppTlo2jsm
— Which? (@WhichUK) September 1, 2023
On the other hand, when the link is opened on a smaller screen like that of a smartphonethe page that is displayed is no longer the same and contains many pornographic advertisements very explicit. The domain is registered in the name of a person located in Lianyungang, China. This is also the language used on the site. Prior to its hijacking, the latter originally belonged to the brand responsible for Paw Patrol productswhich was dissolved in June 2022.
Source: TechCrunch