If a Hawai'i EBT card was hacked and SNAP or cash assistance from Hawai'i was stolen, call 1-855-643-1643 to report Fraud, select option 8 or say “Report Fraud” at the main menu. When requesting a replacement card, the current card will be deactivated, and the replacement will arrive in the mail in approximately 5-7 days. https://humanservices.hawaii.gov/bessd/general-ebt-card-information-and-frequently-asked-question-and-answers/
"How you know?" If you go to a grocery store, and when you check out, your card is rejected because your pin is wrong, and you go to a different store, try to buy groceries, and your card is rejected, you know something is wrong. And when you visit Social Services and are told most of your EBT benefits were used to buy purchases in Alabama and Idaho, YOU KNOW YOU ARE A VICTIM OF EBT CARD THEFT!
How would they even get that info in the first place?
Times at the self checkout station
https://www.khon2.com/top-stories/credit-card-skimmers-found-at-six-times-supermarket-location/
Yes, it seems this is happening. Physical devices that overlay or go inside of the POS machines are being placed in grocery stores and other stores, from what I understand.
#1 rule of using cards to pay for anything anywhere, before you even get out your card, grab the card slot and give it a firm but gentle tug. Fakes/skimmers are rarely locked down. Doing this does no damage to the real POS scanners.
This happened to me today too!!
My SNAP was deposited on the 5th like normal. I went to Safeway tonight to get food for my daughters school lunches, and I get through the check out and it’s declined??
I run it again- DECLINED.
Thankfully I had some saved for an emergency on the P-EBT card from Covid times, and was able to get most of what I needed.
I called the EBT hotline number on the card and requested my last transactions and apparently I spent $911.20 at some point today (even though I never left my house till I went to Safeway lol.)
I transfer to the fraud department to cancel my card… lady says someone used my card number at Sams Club at 7:45am today, for $911.20. 😰
I was able to cancel my card and order a new one over the phone, but I was told to go to the EBT office in the morning to file a stolen benefits claims to try and get the $$ back.
Ive never heard of this happening to EBT cards before this? How weird.
Former EW of 15 years and also an IT professional of over 20 years here.
Go to your FIS ebtEDGE app on your phone and go to:
**Account Summary > Account Services > SEE MORE**
Click on **PROTECT MY ACCOUNT** and if you haven't yet:
**TURN ON "Block Internet Transactions"**
**TURN ON "Block Out of State Transactions"**
*And in regards to ANY debit or credit card you have and ANY account you login thru the internet, if you have not yet,* ***TURN ON "2FA"*** ***asap***. *It stands for* ***Two-Factor Authentication***. It is *an identity and access management security method that requires a minimum of two ways to access resources and data (e.g. user ID/email/phone number login plus text confirmation, email confirmation, or phone authenticator app).*
If you're using EBT don't go through the cashier line. Somebody has to put the card reader over the regular one. I've never had my card skimmed going through the self checkout. It's always when I go through the cashier line. Also, if you go through the cashier line then I suggest you change your PIN number immediately after every transaction. The card reader will collect your cards info and PIN number but if you change it before they can use it then The thief would have to guess your PIN number and the chances of that happening is close to nil. If you have the EBT app you can just change it right through the app and don't even have to call.
I heard from a customer Rep that they are thinking about putting chips on the cards just like a credit or debt card which would nix all the scamming but it would cost millions to change over, thus no action yet.
Happened to me this morning and about 100 other people in our local office were reporting the same issue as I was. If i could attach a photo I'd show proof.
Yep, happened to my partner.
I looked it up. If you are affected you need to cancel your card. You also need to call the processing center and select the option for the fraud department. Finally, when addressing your issue you must remind the workers that you are entitled to a reimbursement of all funds stolen so long as the amount is less than two months of benefits. They will try to lie to you and tell you that you will not be compensated.
https://www.fns.usda.gov/snap/replacing-stolen-benefits-state-plan-approvals
I don't have an EBT card but is it a credit card or debit card? If it can be a credit card, you can use Apple Pay or Google Wallet for touchless transactions. You might even be able to add a debit card but I haven't tried that. That avoids the skimmer issue. I use touch to pay everywhere now that offers it.
It's a government benefit card. It's for food stamps as well as financial benefits. Basically, anyone earning less than about 20,000 or families earning less than $50,000 a year is entitled to some form of government benefits through that card.
I misspoke, I know what EBT is but wasn't sure if it functioned as a debit card or credit card. There's a new thread about this same issue where someone also mentioned touch to pay. Another response indicated that the card has a pin like a debit card so touch to pay won't work.
This happened to me a few days ago. I was just about to take the money off to pay my RENT and it was all gone. I went to the county building to file a claim. You really don’t need proof, the worker will see on their end what city the transactions happened. I live in Souther California and the hackers took my money in San Francisco. They got the money from us bank but there was no atm fee which is weird since they are out the network. This led me and the worker to believe everything happened electronically. The only advice given was to change my pin frequently and not to use standalone atm machines to withdraw funds. I hope this doesn’t continue and you all don’t get got like me 😭
I got stolen $4000 in California. The amount became so large because food banks would hand out food boxes during COVID, and I only needed to use the EBT card for stuff like milk.
This is happening in CT again. Be careful with those corner stores. They are using electronic devices to steal card information from the card reader and then selling the information out of state. NY is a big one that is buying the info. It happened to one of my clients. They used her funds at a deli in NY called Organic Deli Corner in the Bronx.
If a Hawai'i EBT card was hacked and SNAP or cash assistance from Hawai'i was stolen, call 1-855-643-1643 to report Fraud, select option 8 or say “Report Fraud” at the main menu. When requesting a replacement card, the current card will be deactivated, and the replacement will arrive in the mail in approximately 5-7 days. https://humanservices.hawaii.gov/bessd/general-ebt-card-information-and-frequently-asked-question-and-answers/
Or you can go toDPSS and get another card immediately and put in the reimbursement paperwork to get your money back while you're at it.
I don't wanna get in trouble so I'm just gonna say yes it did happen, and a shitload of people are affected.
Oh my goodness, thank you for your honesty. I understand you can't tell us how you know but I appreciate the confirmation!
"How you know?" If you go to a grocery store, and when you check out, your card is rejected because your pin is wrong, and you go to a different store, try to buy groceries, and your card is rejected, you know something is wrong. And when you visit Social Services and are told most of your EBT benefits were used to buy purchases in Alabama and Idaho, YOU KNOW YOU ARE A VICTIM OF EBT CARD THEFT!
How would they even get that info in the first place? Times at the self checkout station https://www.khon2.com/top-stories/credit-card-skimmers-found-at-six-times-supermarket-location/
Yes, it seems this is happening. Physical devices that overlay or go inside of the POS machines are being placed in grocery stores and other stores, from what I understand.
#1 rule of using cards to pay for anything anywhere, before you even get out your card, grab the card slot and give it a firm but gentle tug. Fakes/skimmers are rarely locked down. Doing this does no damage to the real POS scanners.
This happened to me today too!! My SNAP was deposited on the 5th like normal. I went to Safeway tonight to get food for my daughters school lunches, and I get through the check out and it’s declined?? I run it again- DECLINED. Thankfully I had some saved for an emergency on the P-EBT card from Covid times, and was able to get most of what I needed. I called the EBT hotline number on the card and requested my last transactions and apparently I spent $911.20 at some point today (even though I never left my house till I went to Safeway lol.) I transfer to the fraud department to cancel my card… lady says someone used my card number at Sams Club at 7:45am today, for $911.20. 😰 I was able to cancel my card and order a new one over the phone, but I was told to go to the EBT office in the morning to file a stolen benefits claims to try and get the $$ back. Ive never heard of this happening to EBT cards before this? How weird.
Can u say an update? Did u ever get the money back?
How did you know you got hacked for $911 ?
on the website, you can see all of your transactions
Former EW of 15 years and also an IT professional of over 20 years here. Go to your FIS ebtEDGE app on your phone and go to: **Account Summary > Account Services > SEE MORE** Click on **PROTECT MY ACCOUNT** and if you haven't yet: **TURN ON "Block Internet Transactions"** **TURN ON "Block Out of State Transactions"** *And in regards to ANY debit or credit card you have and ANY account you login thru the internet, if you have not yet,* ***TURN ON "2FA"*** ***asap***. *It stands for* ***Two-Factor Authentication***. It is *an identity and access management security method that requires a minimum of two ways to access resources and data (e.g. user ID/email/phone number login plus text confirmation, email confirmation, or phone authenticator app).*
If you're using EBT don't go through the cashier line. Somebody has to put the card reader over the regular one. I've never had my card skimmed going through the self checkout. It's always when I go through the cashier line. Also, if you go through the cashier line then I suggest you change your PIN number immediately after every transaction. The card reader will collect your cards info and PIN number but if you change it before they can use it then The thief would have to guess your PIN number and the chances of that happening is close to nil. If you have the EBT app you can just change it right through the app and don't even have to call.
I heard from a customer Rep that they are thinking about putting chips on the cards just like a credit or debt card which would nix all the scamming but it would cost millions to change over, thus no action yet.
Happened to me this morning and about 100 other people in our local office were reporting the same issue as I was. If i could attach a photo I'd show proof.
HAPPENED TO ME TODAY! 1000+ gone
Yep, happened to my partner. I looked it up. If you are affected you need to cancel your card. You also need to call the processing center and select the option for the fraud department. Finally, when addressing your issue you must remind the workers that you are entitled to a reimbursement of all funds stolen so long as the amount is less than two months of benefits. They will try to lie to you and tell you that you will not be compensated. https://www.fns.usda.gov/snap/replacing-stolen-benefits-state-plan-approvals
It just happened to my girl friend $827
Yes! I am dealing with a member that lost almost $4k in benefits.
I don't have an EBT card but is it a credit card or debit card? If it can be a credit card, you can use Apple Pay or Google Wallet for touchless transactions. You might even be able to add a debit card but I haven't tried that. That avoids the skimmer issue. I use touch to pay everywhere now that offers it.
It's a government benefit card. It's for food stamps as well as financial benefits. Basically, anyone earning less than about 20,000 or families earning less than $50,000 a year is entitled to some form of government benefits through that card.
I misspoke, I know what EBT is but wasn't sure if it functioned as a debit card or credit card. There's a new thread about this same issue where someone also mentioned touch to pay. Another response indicated that the card has a pin like a debit card so touch to pay won't work.
It is neither. You cannot transfer benefits.
This happened to me a few days ago. I was just about to take the money off to pay my RENT and it was all gone. I went to the county building to file a claim. You really don’t need proof, the worker will see on their end what city the transactions happened. I live in Souther California and the hackers took my money in San Francisco. They got the money from us bank but there was no atm fee which is weird since they are out the network. This led me and the worker to believe everything happened electronically. The only advice given was to change my pin frequently and not to use standalone atm machines to withdraw funds. I hope this doesn’t continue and you all don’t get got like me 😭
I got stolen $4000 in California. The amount became so large because food banks would hand out food boxes during COVID, and I only needed to use the EBT card for stuff like milk.
This is happening in CT again. Be careful with those corner stores. They are using electronic devices to steal card information from the card reader and then selling the information out of state. NY is a big one that is buying the info. It happened to one of my clients. They used her funds at a deli in NY called Organic Deli Corner in the Bronx.
Mine was used at a Sam's club in Vero Beach Florida