Baltimore, MD – Feb. 1, 2023 – BJL has been asked to repost this article because the EBT fraud issue continues to be a pressing concern and the situation has become increasingly worse, with reports of widespread fraud and millions of dollars being misused.

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Baltimore, MD – Oct. 27, 2022 – The United States Department of Agriculture has recently received several reports of SNAP fraud, phishing scams in which thieves use “card skimming” or phony messages to steal SNAP benefits.

FOX45 viewers have also continued to call and email, sharing with our team how they’ve been victims of these scams.

At a hearing with Maryland state lawmakers in September, representatives from the Department of Human Services said as of August, 693 cases of EBT fraud were reported.

According to the Maryland Department of Human Services, thieves place a device on a retailer’s card-swiping machine to copy EBT card information. Card skimming can happen to anyone that uses a credit, debit or EBT card, including SNAP participants.

“While card skimming and phishing scams can impact anyone who uses a credit, debit or EBT card, they may hit SNAP households—who rely on their monthly benefits to buy food for themselves and their families—the hardest. What these thieves are doing is deplorable, and FNS will not tolerate it in our programs,” Cindy Long, Administrator of the USDA Food and Nutrition Service said in a news release. “We are working with our state and federal partners to protect your SNAP benefits.”

USDA is also aware of several reports of criminals using phony text messages to obtain EBT card numbers and PINs and steal SNAP benefits.

These are known as phishing scams and are a type of fraud. The department encourages participants to not provide your EBT card number or PIN by phone or text.

USDA encourages SNAP participants to take these actions that may help prevent card skimming:

• Keep your PIN secret. Do not share your PIN with anyone outside your household. Cover the keypad when you enter your PIN on a machine.
• Check your EBT account regularly for unauthorized charges. If you notice any, change your PIN immediately to stop the thief from making any new purchases.
• Check card reading machines to make sure there’s nothing suspicious overlayed or attached to the card swiper or keypad. The overlays can be difficult to detect but are often bigger than the original machine and may hide parts of the machine.