COPRUS CHRISTI, Texas — Anyone who uses an EBT card to pay for food may be at risk of losing their benefits due to scammers. That’s money families are depending on.
“Everything is expensive right now. The food stamps do help a lot. Especially for someone disabled like me,” said Kingsville resident, Delfino Gomez.
Gomez has used EBT benefits for the last 30 years.
He said during that time he hasn’t given much thought to protecting his benefits from scammers.
“I really don’t worry about it because I live in Kingsville and I’m in and out wherever I go,” Gomez said.
Now, the USDA is asking SNAP recipients to be on alert as scammers try to take their money.
Katie Galan from the Better Business Bureau said there’s been an increase in EBT card scams.
Galan said this type of crime is tied to the state of the economy.
“People are receiving text messages and emails saying their account has been blocked and all they need to do is click on this link,” she said.
Thieves are also using card skimming to copy personal information.
“One way to make sure that there isn’t a skimmer on those card readers is to kind of tug on that keypad,” said Galan.
Texas Health and Human Services tells Action 10 News SNAP recipients are given information on how to protect their benefits when their card is issued.
Health and Human Services Commission employees are also trained to identify ways to prevent these crimes from happening.
USDA encourages SNAP participants to take actions that may help prevent card skimming. For example:
- 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.
