Short answer: only if you're sure it wasn't placed there by someone else. One quick check, peeling the corner, catches most fake ones.
Before scanning any QR code in public, check whether it's a sticker. Try peeling or scratching the corner, if it comes off, someone placed it there deliberately, over the real code, to redirect you somewhere they control. This single check catches the majority of fake QR codes in restaurants, parking meters, and public notice boards.
QR code scams are now showing up at ATMs, parking meters, and restaurant tables, anywhere a legitimate code would normally be.
A WhatsApp message, email, or text containing a QR code asking you to "verify your account" or "claim a prize" is a scam. Only scan codes when you're the one who initiated the interaction, sitting down at a restaurant and scanning the table's own menu code is different from scanning one someone sent you unprompted.
When you scan a QR code, your phone shows you the destination link first, before opening it. Read it carefully. If it doesn't match the business name exactly, close it without tapping through, a single misspelled letter or an unfamiliar domain is enough reason to walk away.
This is one trick out of dozens. The Scam-Proof Playbook covers online shopping scams, subscription traps, phishing, and more, in plain language, with real examples.