Bill Introduced to Improve Security of EBT Cards

By Hamodia Staff

WASHINGTON — A bipartisan group of Congressmembers have introduced a bill to upgrade the Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program (SNAP) electronic benefit transfer cards, after tens of millions of dollars of benefits have been stolen by scam artists exploiting the cards’ lax security features.

The electronic benefit transfer (EBT) cards currently have the magnetic strips like those on old credit cards, which can be easily cloned by criminals, rather than the updated secure chips.

According to the bills’ sponsors, Congress has for years pressed the U.S. Department of Agriculture, which administers SNAP, to require states to issue EBT cards with secure chips rather than magnetic strips, but USDA has failed to do so.

“We must ensure families who rely on SNAP get the support they need — and that means we must ensure there are adequate safeguards in place to protect those benefits from cybersecurity threats,” said Rep. Mike Lawler (R-N.Y.), a House sponsor of the bill. “This legislation will go a long way to ensuring that those who need this assistance are the ones receiving it, not the fraudsters who prey on our most vulnerable.”

Among the victims whose benefits have been stolen are some of Lawler’s constituents in Rockland County.

Last month, dozens of families in Brooklyn’s Williamsburg neighborhood unexpectedly found their SNAP balances at zero after scammers used a skimming device attached to a payment terminal at a supermarket to track their EBT card numbers and use the ill-gotten information to buy food elsewhere.

While the cardholders typically get their balances restored after reporting the scams, the thefts mean frantic and anxious days for parents who often rely on the benefits to feed their families, as well as taxpayer losses.

The bill, called the Enhanced Cybersecurity for SNAP Act and introduced Thursday in honor of National Slam the Scam Day, is co-sponsored by Rep. Andy Kim (D-N.J.), and Sens. Ron Wyden, (D-Ore.), John Fetterman (D-Penn.), and Bill Cassidy (R-La.) 

The bill will require that: 

• USDA issue updated regulations requiring SNAP cards to feature anti-fraud technology capable of resisting cloning. These regulations, which also cover mobile payments (such as tap-to-pay with a smartphone), will be updated every five years and must keep pace with private sector and federal agency payment security safeguards. 
• With USDA funding, states will begin issuing chip-enabled SNAP cards within two years of the adoption of the new regulations. Within four years, states will no longer be able to issue new SNAP cards containing a magnetic stripe. Within five years, states will have to reissue all existing SNAP cards containing a magnetic stripe as chip-only cards.
• USDA operates a grant program providing funds for upgraded chip-capable payment machines to small grocery stores in food deserts, farmers markets, and farm-to-consumer programs.
• States provide families with no-fee replacements of SNAP cards in three days or less, if their card is stolen, cloned by fraudsters, or malfunctioning.
• States offer multiple accessible, reliable, and mobile-friendly user interfaces, such as a smartphone app or online web portal, for families to manage their EBT account.

“It’s despicable that thieves are targeting vulnerable hungry families with cybercrime scams. We can’t let families go hungry because of bad faith actors,” said Fetterman. “In addition to this bill, I’ve also introduced the Fairness for Victims of SNAP Skimming Act to give state SNAP agencies more authority to reimburse SNAP recipients of benefits stolen by skimming. I am proud to work across the aisle on this bipartisan, bicameral bill to modernize SNAP and stop criminals from stealing critical food assistance from working families.”