Safe Scan – A Proactive Cloud Sandboxed Firewall for QR Code Mitigation

QR codes are widely used in digital applications such as online payments, ticketing, and advertisements due to their convenience and ease of use. However, the increasing usage of QR codes has also led to rising security threats, including phishing attacks, malicious links, and fraudulent redirections. Most existing QR code scanners directly decode and open embedded content without performing proper security checks, which exposes users to potential cyber risks. To address this issue, this paper proposes Safe Scan, an Android-based application that enhances QR code security using a proactive approach. The system scans QR codes, extracts embedded data, and analyzes it in a cloud-based sandbox environment before allowing user access. By isolating and evaluating the content, the system identifies suspicious or harmful links and classifies them as safe or unsafe. This approach significantly reduces user exposure to threats and improves overall digital security.