Secret Service Seizes 16 LA Skimmers, Averting $16.6 Million in EBT Card Fraud

3 articles · Updated · Fox News · Aug 24

Agents inspecting 1,749 payment terminals at 328 Los Angeles businesses seized 16 skimmers, and the Secret Service said the removals likely prevented about $16.6 million in fraud losses.
The sweep focused on EBT fraud because many benefit cards still rely on magnetic stripes, letting criminals capture card data and PINs, then clone cards and drain accounts used for groceries and essentials.
Investigators said the devices are increasingly hard to spot—one suspect installed a skimmer in under two seconds, and some units carried fake security holograms and wireless transmitters to send stolen data remotely.
The agency said a single skimmer can generate up to $1 million in theft; it estimates skimming costs consumers and financial institutions more than $1 billion annually, with 32 active federal investigations across 15 states.
Federal officials are pushing chip-enabled SNAP EBT cards to close that gap, but the transition is still underway, leaving millions of recipients exposed to swipe-based fraud.