'Stay alert' | Louisville woman warning others after her EBT card was hacked | Local News

LOUISVILLE, Ky. (WDRB) -- Debit cards for food stamps are being hacked, causing people to lose out on hundreds of dollars.

It's an issue people all over the country are facing. People are using card skimmers to steal from Electronic Benefits Transfer (EBT) cards, and they're stealing from the people who need that money the most.

Edna Evans said she was hoping to have a Merry Christmas with her family.

"It's like the Grinch that stole Christmas," said Evans.

But now, she has to figure out how to make that Christmas merry.

"It kept declining, it just kept declining," she said.

Evans is enrolled in the Kentucky Transitional Assistance Program, also known as KTAP, which provides financial and medical help to needy families in Kentucky.

Her account was recently hacked.

"The money was there. Then it was gone," Evans said.

She went to Thorntons and spent a few dollars around midnight. Hours later, her card was wiped clean — $375 gone.

"So they know me in the Kroger where I live and they were like 'Well, no, it keeps declining. You don't have anything on here,'" said Evans. "So I said 'Well, wait a minute, it's impossible I just used it this morning.'"

But Evans isn't alone. Others have reached out and said their EBT cards were hacked too.

"People's not gonna be able to eat, the kids are not gonna be able to have a Christmas," she said. "I mean, what's going on?"

The issue is being seen from coast to coast. This year, people in Hawaii, California, Texas, Mississippi, Illinois, Indiana, Kentucky, Tennessee, New York, Virginia, and North Carolina have reported EBT cards that were hacked.

"People really need this money and the KTAP and the food stamps for (their) children. People don't have, people that's underprivileged, you know, they don't have, need the money," said Evans. "So why would you take and steal money from the babies? Why? Why would you do that to the kids? And here at Christmas?"

This year, the U.S. Department of Agriculture required state agencies to submit a plan to replace stolen Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program (SNAP) benefits. It's unclear if Evans would qualify for that because she's under the transitional assistance program.

Evans suggests keeping an eye on where you swipe your card.

"Stay alert, stay alert, stay alert," she said.

The Kentucky Cabinet for Health and Family Services, which regulates the benefits, said states are "federally required to repay benefits stolen through electronic fraud of Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program (SNAP)and the Transitional Assistance Program (KTAP), retroactive to Oct. 1, 2022."

Susan Dunlap, executive director for the Office of Public Affairs, Kentucky Cabinet for Health and Family Services, said since Aug. 10, there have been 2,100 theft complaints in the state that have been investigated for SNAP, Simplified Assistance for the Elderly (SAFE) nutrition program, P-EBT and KTAP. Of those complaints, Dunlap said 1,100 "resulted in replaced benefits" through reloaded cards for a total of over $546,000.

"We are continuing to work with others impacted to help restore the benefits that were stolen from them," said Dunlap. "Consumers are encouraged to remain on alert for threats of skimming and cloning and should take steps to protect their identity, including changing their PIN number frequently and watching for text message and email alerts."

To read more about the ongoing issue of stolen benefits, and what to do if your card gets hacked, click here.