BISMARCK, ND ( KXNET ) — A scam relatively new to North Dakota is making the rounds in Fargo and Cass County and may be spreading west across the state.

The Fargo Police Department has alerted residents through its Facebook page about a “brushing” scam that has been reported in that area.

A person receives an unexpected package in the mail, possibly containing items such as rings, bracelets, bluetooth speakers or other gifts. However, there is no sender information on the package, or it may list a known retailer.

Also inside the package is a QR code for the recipient to scan, which supposedly will reveal who specifically sent the gift package and why.

However, once the QR code is scanned, it gives hackers access to any personal and financial information stored on the phone.

Bottom line: Don’t scan the QR code.

The gift items are usually very cheap in quality. Scammers figure the low cost of the items is much less than the payday they hope to receive using your stolen personal information.

In one variation on the scam, the recipient is told he or she is a verified buyer who has written positive online reviews of the merchandise. The scammer then posts fake reviews of the products you received using your name and location to fraudulently boost or inflate the ratings and sales numbers for the items. Your good name and reputation is used to prompt people to buy worthless products.

The U.S. Postal Service has a page with more information on the brushing scam here .

If you received an unsolicited package that contains a QR code or a note implying you’ve left reviews for the included items, you’re asked to report it to the FBI at this web page .

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