Below is a press release from the Mississippi Department of Human Services:
The Mississippi Department of Human Services (MDHS) has announced that it has received federal approval to replace stolen Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program (SNAP) benefits for victims of fraud. This theft usually occurs from scams, including skimming and cloning, where scammers obtain SNAP EBT numbers and Personal Identification Numbers (PINs) to gain access to SNAP benefits.
Starting August 14, 2023, MDHS will begin the replacement of stolen SNAP EBT benefits to eligible recipients. If eligible for replacement benefits, the total replacement amount cannot exceed the amount of the stolen benefits or the amount equal to two months of the household's SNAP benefits, whichever is less. Most eligible SNAP households will receive replacement benefits issued to their new SNAP EBT Cards within 10 days of approval of their claim.
If you suspect that your SNAP benefits were stolen, please report the theft to the MDHS Office of Inspector General at SNAP: Stolen Benefit Replacement - Mississippi Department of Human Services (ms.gov) or call 1-800-299-6905. If your benefits were stolen between October 1, 2022, and August 13, 2023, you must report the theft by October 13, 2023. Benefits stolen on or after August 14, 2023, must be reported within 30 days of discovering the theft.
To prevent benefit theft, MDHS recommends the following best practices:
- Avoid Simple PINs: Number combinations such as 1111, 1234, or 9876 may be easy for others to guess.
- Frequent PIN changes: By changing PINs frequently, at least monthly, and doing so before benefit issuance dates, households can minimize their risk of stolen benefits from a previously skimmed EBT card.
- Keep your PIN secret. Do not share your PIN with anyone outside your household. Cover the keypad when you enter your PIN on a machine.
- Check your EBT account regularly for unauthorized charges. If you notice any, change your PIN immediately to stop the thief from making new purchases.
- Check card reading machines to make sure there's nothing suspicious overlayed or attached to the card swiper or keypad. The overlays can be difficult to detect but are often bigger than the original machine and may hide parts of the machine.
If you believe you have been a victim of SNAP EBT theft, MDHS requests that you call the Mississippi EBT cardholder service center at 1-866-512-5087 as soon as possible to report the card as compromised and create a new PIN. This will deactivate the card and send a new card to the account holder.
Customers can learn more about requesting replacement benefits on our SNAP Fraud Benefit Replacement page SNAP: Stolen Benefit Replacement - Mississippi Department of Human Services (ms.gov) . Customers can also learn more about preventing and detecting fraud on the EBT fraud web page Report Fraud - Mississippi Department of Human Services (ms.gov).
