According to police, the scamsters stick fake QR codes above the bar codes of original ones displayed in shops, roadside eateries and push carts. When the customer pays the money by scanning the QR code, then the amount goes into the account of the fraudster. 

The fraud came to light after Duraisamy, 37, who runs a fast food shop in Mudalipalayam near Tirupur found that the amount paid by a customer was not credited into his account. 

He was shocked to find a fake code pasted above the original one in his shop. As the news spread out, it was then found that most of the shops, hotels, and workshops in the SIDCO area had such fake QR codes. 

On receiving multiple complaints, Uthukuli police scanned the images recorded in CCTV in nearby buildings and found a man with a helmet pasting those fake stickers during night. A search is on to nab the culprit. Tirupur SP G Shashank Sai appealed to shop keepers not to stick QR codes in outer walls to avoid such frauds.