The plastic in our wallets is our lifeline, as we whip it out for everything from gas to groceries. And if we lose it — or, worse yet, someone intent on stealing our funds taps into it — we could be cut off financially.
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Fraudsters abound, waiting to separate us from our money, and they’re striking financial products that include electronic benefits cards with their scams. An EBT is a card used for government benefits by those who qualify, and it isn’t immune to scammers.
“Fundamentally, an EBT card is not too dissimilar to a bank-issued debit card. It is pre-loaded with a credit balance, which is then spent in store or online,” said Daniel Holmes of Feedzai, which works to fight financial crimes and fraud.
“This means that the way in which the fraud manifests is actually quite similar to ‘traditional’ card fraud. However, the scams in today’s world are very sophisticated and will be tailored to reflect the specific scenario of the victim. This means if a fraudster is targeting an EBT card holder, the way in which they will aim to compromise their card details will reflect the victim’s personal situation. This increases overhead for the fraudster but drastically increases their chance of success and monetization.”
The number of EBT scams has grown since the start of the pandemic, Holmes said.
“Employment limitations and lockdown…
