Costa Rica is warning drivers about a scam in which fake parking or violation notices are being left on windshields in paid parking areas. The papers tell people they parked improperly and urge them to scan a QR code to view or pay a supposed fine. Recent reports have been linked to San Carlos and Pérez Zeledón.
The scam is designed to look official at a glance. The notice is presented as a violation slip, with language telling the driver they parked incorrectly and should scan a code for more details. Instead, the QR code can send users to a fraudulent page built to steal payment details or other personal information. Security agencies describe this kind of QR-based phishing as quishing, a tactic that hides a malicious web address behind a code that looks harmless.
In San Carlos, the municipality said the documents are not official and urged drivers to ignore them, not scan the QR codes, not share personal information, and not make payments through unofficial channels. It also said suspicious activity can be reported to the Municipal Police Monitoring Center at 8621-1118.
The warning fits a pattern Costa Rica has already seen. In Cartago, local officials issued a similar alert in March of last year after fake QR notices were left on parked vehicles. Officials there said parking transactions were handled through the official ePark app and did not require QR slips or documents placed on cars.
For those coming here on vacation or even those who live here, the risk is easy to miss because parking systems can change from one municipality to another and many legitimate services now do use phones and online payments. San Carlos, for example, routes users to online payment through its official municipal website. That means the safer move is to go directly to the municipality’s official site or approved app rather than scanning any code left on the vehicle or placed on parking signage.
The alert comes as digital fraud keeps rising in Costa Rica. OIJ figures reported this month show 10,027 complaints of computer fraud in 2025, compared with 8,249 street robberies, and judicial police also said cybercriminals stole about ₡6 billion last year through banking fraud schemes. In that context, a fake QR code in a parking area is one more way ordinary routines are being turned into easy targets.
Costa Rica is advising tourists and of course those of use that live here not to scan the code, not to enter card or bank information, and to confirm any parking payment only through official municipal websites or approved apps.
