Latest news with #HaywoodTalcove
Yahoo
07-04-2025
- Yahoo
Nearly $21M in SNAP benefits has been stolen from Illinois families. What to do if it happens to you
Scammers have left many Illinois residents unable to feed their families after stealing Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program (SNAP) benefits, reports CBS News Chicago. SNAP provides monthly food benefits to low-income households to help fund groceries, but over the past two years, criminals have siphoned off millions. From October 2022 to December 2024, scammers stole nearly $21 million in SNAP benefits from more than 38,000 households across Illinois through almost 124,000 fraudulent transactions. I'm 49 years old and have nothing saved for retirement — what should I do? Don't panic. Here are 5 of the easiest ways you can catch up (and fast) Nervous about the stock market in 2025? Find out how you can access this $1B private real estate fund (with as little as $10) Here are 3 'must have' items that Americans (almost) always overpay for — and very quickly regret. How many are hurting you? "My family and I can't buy groceries this month," one victim wrote to CBS News. Another Chicago victim said they checked their balance and found $1,039 was stolen from their EBT card in six separate transactions after someone used their benefits hundreds of miles away at a deli and grocery store in New York. 'I am not the only victim," she wrote. "When the clerk gave me the report to file she said this has been severe since 2022." But how are thieves getting away with it? Much of the fraud stems from skimming, a tactic where scammers use hidden devices to copy EBT card data during a transaction. 'Skimming is a big part of the SNAP EBT fraud,' James Morley of the U.S. Secret Service Chicago Field Office told CBS News. "You could have criminals in another state or another country that are getting that data real-time as it's being captured." These skimming devices, often installed on payment terminals at stores, can transmit card data via Bluetooth to criminals in real-time — sometimes in other states or even countries. The core issue is that most EBT cards still use magnetic stripes, not the chip-enabled security found in modern debit and credit cards. That leaves them vulnerable to data theft with a single swipe. "What I don't understand, though, is how in the world when the entire world switched to chip-enabled cards over a decade ago, why the food stamp program didn't do the same thing," said Haywood Talcove, CEO of Government Business for LexisNexis Risk Solutions. The fraud isn't just ongoing — it's accelerating. In 2024 alone, thieves made off with $12.5 million, accounting for 57% of all fraud losses since Illinois began tracking the problem, reports CBS News. Worse still, stolen benefits are no longer reimbursed. The federal reimbursement program ended in December 2024, leaving victims on their own. Some states are taking steps to prevent EBT card fraud. California has rolled out chip-enabled EBT cards, and Oklahoma plans to do so soon. Chips use tokenization, which makes it nearly impossible for fraudsters to skim the information. Illinois is participating in the USDA Mobile Payment Pilot program instead, set to launch later this year. This program allows people to add their EBT card to their mobile wallet and then tap to pay at checkout. While this program may be more secure, it requires users to have a smartphone, which could be a barrier for SNAP recipients who don't own or regularly use smartphones. Read more: Trump warns his tariffs will spark a 'disturbance' in America — use this 1 dead-simple move to help shockproof your retirement plans ASAP Unfortunately, since federal reimbursements ended in December 2024, there's no guarantee your stolen funds will be replaced. Some victims, like a Chicago man who lost $698 in under a minute, say they've been told to wait until next month's benefits. "IDHS isn't replacing any of the benefits for the month. They are just giving people new cards, telling them to wait until next month's benefits," he wrote to CBS News. The best way to prevent SNAP fraud is to be alert and proactive. If your state is offering chipped SNAP cards, request a replacement. Otherwise, you can: Block out-of-state transactions Turn your card off after making a purchase Block internet transactions If you think your funds have been stolen, take immediate action, and: Contact your state's EBT provider or local health services office right away to report the theft. Request a new EBT card as soon as possible. Monitor your EBT account regularly for suspicious or unauthorized charges. Document everything, including the date and amount of stolen funds, and where the transactions occurred. U.S. Rep. Jan Schakowsky of Illinois says she's working to change the lack of reimbursement. 'I have heard from constituents who have had their benefits stolen and have not been reimbursed…I will not back down. I plan to continue to work with my colleagues in the state legislature to ensure all Illinoisans can access their benefits,' she said in a statement. In the meantime, many Illinois families are left waiting — and wondering how they'll put food on the table. Want an extra $1,300,000 when you retire? Dave Ramsey says this 7-step plan 'works every single time' to kill debt, get rich in America — and that 'anyone' can do it Rich, young Americans are ditching the stormy stock market — here are the alternative assets they're banking on instead Cost-of-living in America is still out of control — and prices could keep climbing. Use these 3 'real assets' to protect your wealth today, no matter what Trump does This article provides information only and should not be construed as advice. It is provided without warranty of any kind.
CBS News
20-03-2025
- CBS News
Millions of dollars stolen in Illinois SNAP benefits fraud, leaving vulnerable families at risk
Scammers stole tens of millions of dollars from Illinois families and taxpayers in just over two years, a new report sent to state legislators revealed. Food benefits fraud continues into 2025, even though stolen benefits are no longer being reimbursed . "I checked the balance of the EBT card. Seven cents was on it," one recent victim wrote. "My family and I can't buy groceries this month," wrote another. CBS News Chicago has been covering stories of stolen SNAP benefits since fall 2022 . As a result, legislation passed requiring the Illinois Department of Human Services to track that type of fraud within the SNAP system and submit an annual report to the state legislature. From Oct. 2022 through Dec. 2024, nearly $21 million was stolen from more than 38,000 households through nearly 124,000 fraudulent transactions. In 2024, the total of $12.5 million stolen made up 57% of all of the benefits pocketed by fraudsters since the tracking began. "We're seeing the wave across the country increase significantly where the cards are being stolen and legitimate individuals, those who are eligible for SNAP are left in a situation where they can't pay for their groceries," said Haywood Talcove, CEO of Government Business for LexisNexis Risk Solutions. Nationally that figure stands at more than $220 million, according to the latest U.S. Department of Agriculture data, which calculates funds replaced through Sept. 30, 2024. In Illinois, the tracking will continue, including how many people report fraud, but don't get reimbursed. Two people who reached out to CBS News Chicago about recent cases of benefit theft will be among those counted but not reimbursed. Both filed fraud claims with IDHS. One is a Chicago woman who had $1,039 stolen in six out-of-state transactions on Jan. 31. All six occurred within 43 minutes of each other at the same Long Island, New York deli and grocery store. "I am not the only victim," she wrote. "When the clerk gave me the report to file she said this has been severe since 2022." The second is a Chicago man who had $698 stolen within one minute at three out-of-state businesses in New York, New Jersey and Pennsylvania respectively. The funds were stolen within a half hour of them being deposited into his account on Feb. 9. He's concerned about feeding his family. "IDHS isn't replacing any of the benefits for the month. They are just giving people new cards, telling them to wait until next month's benefits," he wrote. "There's people that live in your city, in Chicago, that are put in a horrible situation because of the lack of progress the federal government has made in securing those cards," said Talcove. In Illinois, more than one million households use EBT cards, known in-state as Link, to access their SNAP benefits. The cards do not contain more secure chips as most, it not all, debit and credit cards do now. Those chips allow customers to tap rather than swipe their cards at a point-of-sale (POS) terminal during checkout. "Skimming is a big part of the SNAP EBT fraud," said Assistant Special Agent in Charge James Morley of the U.S. Secret Service Chicago Field Office. When a card is swiped, the data on it, like the card number, is susceptible to being copied by way of a device called a skimmer. "That skimmer will have Bluetooth in it." Morley said. When you swipe your card, Bluetooth sends your card information to an unlocked cell phone nearby in the store. That phone then transfers the data to anywhere where there's an internet or cell connection. "So you could have criminals in another state or another country that are getting that data real time as it's being captured," said Morley. The real issue, Talcove said, is no security technology with the cards themselves. "What I don't understand, though, is how in the world when the entire world switched to chip-enabled cards over a decade ago, why the food stamp program didn't do the same thing," said Talcove. This year, states are starting to roll out chip-enabled EBT cards. California is the first. Oklahoma will be next. Illinois has opted not to switch to chip cards. Instead, the state will be one of five participating in the USDA Mobile Payment Pilot program set to launch later in 2025. The program allows state EBT cards, like the Illinois Link card, to be placed in a phone's mobile wallet. The phone is then used to tap to pay at checkout. "I think that is a tremendous idea. And I would actually skip the chip card and force everyone onto a mobile device because that is even more secure," said Talcove. Talcove warned that no matter which smarter tech states go to, all stores will have to upgrade their older POS terminals which are a preferred target for skimming devices. Until upgrades happen, the Secret Service is on a nationwide mission to find skimming devices and educate store owners of what to watch for. In Oct. 2024, secret service agents, along Chicago police and other local law enforcement, went to about 200 businesses and checked hundreds of devices at those POS terminals, ATMs and gas pumps. They found six skimmers all in Cook County. In 2025, agents have already found dozens more across the country from Las Vegas to Washington, D.C. As for reimbursing money stolen from SNAP recipients which ran out on December 20, 2024 U.S. Rep. Jan Schakowsky of Illinois' 9th Congressional District said in a statement, "I have heard from constituents who have had their benefits stolen and have not been reimbursed. My GOP colleagues in Congress refuse to support legislation to reimburse all those who have been affected, but I will not back down. I plan to continue to work with my colleagues in the state legislature to ensure all Illinoisans can access their benefits."
