No compassion for the downtrodden when it comes to fraud. Fraudsters are non-discriminating group. Just like there are criminal rings for stealing financial information from personal credit cards and debit cards, those same guys are actively trying to steal SNAP benefits. It is a growing problem and as Matt Damschroder, director of the Ohio Department of Job and Family Services points out “we’re spending a lot of time on it.” Time means money. Money that is not going to the to the SNAP benefit recipients nor back to the U.S. taxpayer pocket. Does that ever happen? We are not talking just about time either. Since June, Ohio has paid out more than $1 million to victims of food stamp theft due to fraudsters hacking into benefit EFT cards. Benefits we are paying for again, with no program infrastructures changes on the horizon.
In late 2022, Congress passed a law that lets states access federal funds to repay victims of electronic benefits theft. Ohio launched its reimbursement program in June. What’s to prevent those funds from being stolen too? Nothing. That’s because SNAP benefits are provided on technology that can be hacked by a fifth grader. Turns out the federal government doesn’t require—or pay for—extra security features.
Many within the Ohio Department of Job and Family Services struggle with this problem. “Certainly, we want to be cautious and not open a new avenue for possible fraud to take place,” Damschroder said. It seems since embedded chips are not going to show up on benefit cards any time soon, the only solution is to not fully reimburse stolen benefits. Ohio cardholders can request reimbursement only twice in a fiscal year. And just to stick it to the recipients a little more, the amount they’re eligible for is capped at twice their monthly benefits payment. And if the fraudsters hack these funds? Go hungry.
Kudos to the Ohio Department of Job and Family Services for striving to improve the well-being of Ohio’s vulnerable with what little resources they have.
Today’s Fraud of The Day is based on article “’A growing problem’: Ohio repays more than $1 million in stolen food-stamp benefits” published by News Cleveland on February 23, 2024
Since June, Ohio has paid out more than $1 million to victims of food stamp theft. That’s compensation for roughly 2,500 people who lost money off their Ohio Direction Cards—even though those cards were safely stowed in their wallets, pockets or purses.
“Just like there are criminal rings for stealing financial information from credit cards and debit cards, those same types of criminal enterprises are active in trying to steal SNAP benefits,” said Matt Damschroder, director of the Ohio Department of Job and Family Services. “It’s a growing problem,” he added, “and we’re spending a lot of time on it.”
