Los Angeles County Launches EBT Safety Month: Skimming Stole Over $42.7 Million in 2025 as County Urges Tap First, Chip Second
LOS ANGELES COUNTY, California — The Los Angeles County Department of Public Social Services (DPSS) has launched its EBT Safety and Security Month community campaign, educating customers, businesses and local organizations on safeguarding Electronic Benefits Transfer transactions against skimming and scamming fraud.
The stakes are concrete: in Los Angeles County alone, EBT card skimming accounted for over $42.7 million in stolen card benefits in 2025. When EBT benefits are stolen, families lose the resources they depend on for food and basic needs, and retailers lose sales and customer trust when a customer's card information is compromised through a tampered point-of-sale device.
The campaign promotes a dual-layer strategy combining retail POS protection with cardholder account controls. Customers are urged to keep benefits safe by using tap-to-pay first, followed by the chip; swiping the magnetic stripe should be a last resort. Businesses are advised to check payment equipment regularly for physical tampering or skimming overlays, ensure checkout areas are monitored, and contact the California EBT Retailer Hotline at (866) 328-4212 for POS technical support.
Since the launch of state security features through the ebtEDGE mobile application, California cardholders have used controls such as card freezing over 9.5 million times, according to the department. Questions about the campaign can be directed to [email protected].
Source: GSM · USA (original Chinese edition)
Photo: 图：位于洛杉矶市中心的洛杉矶县行政大厅（Kenneth Hahn Hall of Administration）。Visitor7 摄，CC BY-SA 3.0，经 Wikimedia Commons 发布。/ The Kenneth Hahn Hall of Administration in downtown Los Angeles. Photo by Visitor7, CC BY-SA 3.0, via Wikimedia Commons.
