CalFresh EBT theft happening in my neighborhood - how to protect benefits?

This is happening everywhere right now, especially in Southern California. I work at a community resource center and we've had at least 20 clients report EBT theft in the past month alone. The most common ways thieves are stealing benefits: 1. Card skimmers at gas stations and ATMs 2. PIN capturing at certain stores with compromised terminals 3. Card cloning when your card is briefly out of sight Protect yourself by: - ALWAYS checking for skimmers before inserting your card - Covering the keypad when entering your PIN - Changing your PIN monthly - Using the BenefitsCal app to freeze/unfreeze your card when not in use And most importantly, file a police report immediately. As of January 2025, California has improved their reimbursement process, but you MUST have a police report to qualify.

Same EXACT thing happened to me!! $750 gone in 24 hrs and I never even took my card outta my wallet that day!!! This is crazy how they getting away with this stuff. Did urs say it was spent at stores in another city?? Mine showed purchases in Bakersfield but I live in Fresno and havent been there in years!!!

You're onto something with creating a group to look for patterns. When this happened in my county last year, we discovered most victims had used their EBT cards at the same two gas stations. Both turned out to have skimmers installed. Your county CalFresh office should be tracking these cases - have you contacted them directly about the pattern you're noticing? Btw, that worker was WRONG about reimbursement. As of October 2024, federal law requires states to replace stolen SNAP benefits up to two months' worth if you report within 45 days. California specifically has enhanced protections under SB-740 that passed last year.

my aunt lost her benefits to and she thinks it was the cashier at food 4 less who did it cause she handed her card to him when it wasnt working right and then like 2 days later all her money was gone

I'm an eligibility worker for CalFresh, and I want to clarify some important information: 1. EBT theft is considered differently than regular SNAP fraud. You need to file BOTH a police report AND a claim with the EBT Customer Service (1-877-328-9677). 2. For claims filed in 2025, California will reimburse up to two months of benefits if you report within 45 days of the theft. 3. The county offices are now tracking patterns of theft by location. If you're creating a community group, please share your findings with your local office - it genuinely helps investigations. 4. Protect yourself: Never share your PIN, change it regularly, check for skimmers, and freeze your card when not in use. 5. Most importantly: Your county office should assign you emergency replacement benefits while your claim is being investigated if you have no food. This is a separate process from the theft reimbursement.

When I had my benefits stolen last year ($1200!!!) I was freaking out too. The worst part was I kept getting different information from every person I talked to. One said I'd never get it back, another said I needed to wait 90 days. Complete mess. Here's what ACTUALLY worked for me: 1. Filed police report (do this FIRST) 2. Got detailed transaction history from EBT customer service 3. Went IN PERSON to county office with both documents 4. Asked specifically for the fraud department 5. Got emergency benefits within 2 days 6. Full reimbursement took about 5 weeks DON'T give up!!! They count on people getting discouraged and not following through. Keep calling, keep documenting EVERYTHING.

Your idea about creating a group to identify patterns is excellent. I'm actually a cybersecurity expert (not for the government, just my job), and skimming operations typically target specific geographic areas for weeks before moving on. If you're comfortable, you might want to create a simple Google form where people can anonymously input: - Approximate date funds were stolen - Last few legitimate places they used their EBT card - Where the fraudulent transactions occurred This could help identify the common point of compromise. Just be careful not to collect any personal identifying information or card details. This kind of community detective work can be really effective when law enforcement is overwhelmed.

EVERYBODY need to kno that worker lied to u!!!!! benefits CAN be replaced!!! my cosin got hers back after 6 weeks so dont let them tell u no!!!!!!

One more critical thing everyone should know: starting in March 2025, California implemented a new verification process for suspicious EBT transactions. If a transaction occurs far from your home ZIP code OR is unusually large, you should get a text message asking you to confirm it's legitimate. If you haven't set up your mobile number for these alerts, log into your BenefitsCal account and update your contact preferences immediately. Make sure to select "Fraud Alerts" in the notifications section. This won't stop all theft, but it can prevent large-scale draining of benefits if you respond quickly to deny suspicious transactions.