To curtail rampant theft and fraud, California has issued new chip-embedded EBT cards for beneficiaries of assistance programs like CalFresh, CalWORKs, and General Relief. As reported by the County of San Diego, this move aims to protect the roughly 405,000 residents of the County who rely on this electronic system to access their benefits.
The problem has been skimming and scamming, which continue to plague users of the older magnetic stripe cards. Last year alone, San Diego County recorded nearly 23,000 thefts. Introducing the new EBT cards, which are embedded with a chip and boast additional security features, is poised to make it a stiffer challenge for thieves to access and steal benefits. "These benefits are essential for San Diegans on their path to self-sufficiency," said Rick Wanne, director of County Self Sufficiency Services, per the County of San Diego.
Recipients of these benefits are expected to start receiving the new cards in their mailboxes beginning Feb. 25. Activation of the cards is a straightforward process: simply use it at an eligible retailer. However, there is a 180-day window from the receipt date within which these new cards must be activated.
Guidelines for the new EBT cards are clear: users should adopt the tap or insert method during transactions, moving away from the slide technique that defined the older cards. In a seamless transition, all benefits will migrate to the new card, and personal data, along with the PIN, will remain unchanged. It's important to note that once the new EBT card is in hand, the old one should be destroyed to prevent potential misuse. Among the new card's features, as listed by the County of San Diego, personal information has now been relegated to the back side of the card, and the addition of an expiration date and Card Security Code is expected to ramp up security significantly. Remember that the expiration date relates only to the physical card, not the benefits.
