Secret Service Visits Brooklyn to Crack Down on EBT Card Scams

By Y.M. Lowy

The Secret Service protects more than just the president. It also steps in to help New Yorkers who fall victim to scams involving electronic benefit cards, or EBT.

This week, the agency joined forces with the NYPD and USDA for a three-day sweep called Operation Flagship. The effort focused on rooting out scammers in Brooklyn and Staten Island.

Unlike with bank cards, EBT users often cannot flag suspicious activity as fraud, leaving many without the funds they rely on for groceries and other necessities. The Secret Service developed tools to trace and locate the skimmers to combat this. At their Brooklyn office, agents spend hours analyzing data to uncover where the devices are placed.

Special Agent Michael Peck says this is not just a New York issue. It is part of a much larger problem affecting cities across the country. Organized crime groups are stealing up to $18 billion a year from public benefit programs. 

Illustration photo: Shutterstock