A new digital parking system in Elora, Ont. has been abruptly taken offline after a bizarre cyber glitch began routing drivers to a pornography website instead of a payment portal. The Township of Centre Wellington suspended the paid parking program on Wednesday afternoon following immediate social media backlash and frantic warnings from local business owners. According to municipal officials, the township was first alerted to a “potential issue involving links from its paid parking system to the payment platform” on Wednesday afternoon. ‘I thought it was a joke’ Erika Monteiro, who owns a clothing store, said she initially couldn’t believe what her customers were telling her. “I thought it was like a joke, so I scanned the QR code myself,” Monteiro said. “At first it seemed fine, but then it wouldn’t let you pay for parking—that seemed to have been disabled,” Monteiro explained. “But when you went to press ‘pay for a parking ticket,’ it would send you directly to the adult entertainment website.” Monteiro reported seeing township workers racing through downtown yesterday afternoon, covering the compromised QR code signs with garbage bags and tape. The glitch comes just one month after Centre Wellington rolled out the new digital parking system. While the township declined an interview officials released a statement attempting to reassure anxious drivers that their financial data remains secure. “Based on the information provided by the service provider to date, there is no evidence that any personal information, payment details, or financial data have been compromised,” the Township of Centre Wellington said. The township says it will communicate any operational updates and a timeline through its website.
