Mar 8, 2026
Federal prosecutors have charged four Massachusetts residents in a multistate fraud scheme, accusing them of using more than 100 stolen identities to obtain more than $1 million in Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program (SNAP) benefits and pandemic-era unemployment benefits (1).
The U.S. Attorney’s Office, District of Massachusetts, alleges that stolen identities from Connecticut, Florida, Kentucky, New Jersey, New York, Pennsylvania and Puerto Rico were used to obtain SNAP benefits from Rhode Island and Massachusetts totaling $440,000.
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The four defendants are also alleged to have received more than $700,000 in Pandemic Unemployment Assistance (PUA) from Massachusetts, New York, Pennsylvania, Ohio, Washington and Nevada. Prosecutors say they submitted fraudulent applications and supporting documents.
The PUA benefits were issued in the names of three of the four defendants, as well as suspected identity theft victims, including those also used in the SNAP benefit fraud, according to an Attorney’s Office press release (1).
A restaurant owned by one of the defendants was at the center of the investigation. Defendants allegedly “used the fraudulent SNAP benefits cards to purchase large quantities of expensive bulk food items (such as multiple-pound packages of chicken, beef and pork) at various local wholesalers and food markets to stock El Primo Restaurant at no expense.”
The true cost of benefits fraud
“The charges announced today are just a snapshot of the bigger picture, not just in Massachusetts but across the country,” U.S. Attorney for Massachusetts Leah Foley said in a news conference (2).
Foley also said that her office would be adding a fraud coordinator “as a result of the rampant benefit fraud we are seeing here in Massachusetts,” CBS News Boston reported.
A 2025 report (3) from the U.S. Government Accountability Office (GAO) detailed the impacts of stolen SNAP benefits, with authors noting, “hundreds of millions of dollars may be stolen from SNAP recipients’ accounts each year, representing federal dollars diverted from their intended purpose.”
They admit that while the full extent of SNAP benefit theft is unknown, between October 2022 and December 2024, “states reported replacing more than $320 million in stolen benefits.” And as of December 2024, states can no longer replace stolen benefits using federal funds.
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According to the GAO report, thieves stealing SNAP benefits range from individuals to organized crime groups.
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How SNAP benefits are stolen
The GAO report outlines several ways SNAP benefits can be stolen. Card skimming can occur when you make a purchase at a store using your Electronic Benefit Transfer (EBT). Illegal card skimming machines gather account information when you swipe your card. They may also “clone” a card by transferring the account information onto a blank card with a magnetic strip.
Thieves may also steal SNAP benefits through phishing scams, where personal data is gathered via text, email or phone scams that trick people into giving their information
Benefits theft can also occur when thieves target retailers, using “bots” to find online vulnerabilities and steal data, or by accessing retail payment networks that process SNAP transactions.
GAO report authors note that most states do not use SNAP EBT cards equipped with microchips, which help deter fraud by preventing card skimming. While California has modernized its cards to include microchips, and six other states are undertaking card modernization projects, the majority of states don’t use cards that have the protections of modern debit and credit cards.
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However, some states allow SNAP recipients to lock their cards to help stop unauthorized transactions or block specific types of transactions. Recipients may also be able to receive alerts when a purchase is made.
Still, the GAO report authors note that “many of these security measures require SNAP recipients to proactively act on their own.”
They also say that the United States Department of Agriculture (USDA) is making efforts to address benefit theft, such as pilot programs “that will allow state SNAP agencies [to] automatically block certain types of potentially fraudulent transactions like out-of-state or online transactions.”
How to protect yourself
The USDA recommends that SNAP users take the following precautions (4) (5) to protect themselves from benefit theft:
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Keep your PIN and card number secret, and cover the keypad when you enter your PIN.
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Avoid using a simple PIN, such as 1111, and change your PIN monthly, right before the date your benefits are issued.
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Be vigilant to prevent a phishing scam, never disclose your PIN or card number over the phone, or via text or email.
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Regularly check your EBT account and immediately report any suspicious activity to your local SNAP office, and change your PIN.
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If you are able, enable notifications for purchases or account changes, and block specific types of transactions, such as out-of-state transactions.
To protect yourself from identity theft, the Federal Trade Commission (6) recommends regularly reviewing your bills and account statements, and getting and reviewing your credit reports (you can get free reports every 12 months from the three major credit bureaus).
You can also place a credit freeze on your credit reports, which stops anyone from being able to open a new account. Credit freezes are free to place and lift. You can also place an initial fraud alert on your credit reports, in addition to a freeze, notes the FTC, if you suspect fraud.
Article sources
We rely only on vetted sources and credible third-party reporting. For details, see our editorial ethics and guidelines.
U.S. Attorney’s Office, District of Massachusetts (1); CBS News Boston (2); U.S. Government Accountability Office (3); United States Department of Agriculture (4) (5); Federal Trade Commission (6)
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Rebecca Payne has more than a decade of experience editing and producing both local and national daily newspapers. She's worked on the Toronto Star, the Globe and Mail, Metro, Canada's National Observer, the Virginian-Pilot and Daily Press.
