In 2025, the United States Secret Service collaborated with local law enforcement agencies to address card skimming and Electronic Benefits Transfer (EBT) fraud across the country. Over the course of the year, joint teams inspected nearly 60,000 point-of-sale terminals, gas pumps, and ATMs for illegal devices used to steal payment card information.
Vincent Porter, a financial analyst in the Secret Service’s Criminal Investigative Division, described how business owners often reacted with shock and concern when informed that their establishments had been compromised. “During the Boston operation we did, we had a bakery owner who was visibly upset due to the fact that we found a skimming device in his store. He was literally starting to cry,” Porter said. “It wasn’t so much that the device was in there, it was also that it was victimizing his customers.”
Porter noted that outreach operations took place in 22 cities nationwide and involved more than 9,000 businesses. These efforts led to the removal of 411 illegal skimming devices and prevented an estimated $428.1 million in potential losses.
“There is not one operation I’ve been on where I haven’t had someone come up to me while they have seen us inspecting, saying they were a victim of skimming, they lost their EBT funds, and saying how badly it has affected them,” Porter said.
Skimming typically involves criminals placing covert devices on payment terminals or ATMs to capture card data from unsuspecting users. The stolen information can then be encoded onto counterfeit cards for fraudulent purchases or sold online.
Michael Peck, Assistant Special Agent in Charge of the Criminal Investigative Division at the Secret Service, explained how these scams affect both merchants and consumers: “It has happened multiple times when a manager tells us they have checked their store. We ask if we can check. They give us the go-ahead, and we spot a skimmer right away. One manager fell on the floor. He was crushed.” Peck oversees EBT fraud and ATM skimming outreach operations for the agency.
Estimates indicate that card skimming results in annual losses exceeding $1 billion for U.S. financial institutions and consumers.
EBT fraud particularly impacts vulnerable populations relying on government assistance programs for essential needs like food each month. According to Peck: “When you think of an individual recipient getting $300 to $1,200 per month in food benefits, and you divide that into the $428.1 million in potential losses, you are talking about hundreds of thousands of people that would not have been getting their benefits.”
Operations were led by Secret Service field offices in cities including Los Angeles; Washington D.C.; Anchorage; Boston; Orlando; Charlotte; Buffalo; San Diego; New York City; San Antonio; Baltimore; Tampa; Atlanta; Savannah; Memphis; Miami; and Pittsburgh.
Nicole Hendrickson, an investigative analyst at the Secret Service, highlighted store owners’ responses: “Often when we go visit these businesses, the store owners — especially for the mom-and-pops — they will be there in-person, and they’ll say ‘Oh my goodness. I didn’t realize I had a skimmer. I have four other stores. Will you please go check these ones also?’ And we will.”
The agency also distributed educational materials to help businesses recognize illegal devices quickly after installation attempts by scammers.
“Within days or even hours of educating store owners scammers had come back to the store and installed more devices,” Porter said. “Because they knew what to look for, the owners were able to spot them right away.”
Consumers are advised to take precautions such as inspecting card readers for signs of tampering before use, utilizing tap-to-pay or chip-enabled cards when possible instead of swiping magnetic stripes or entering PINs at potentially compromised locations—especially gas stations—and using ATMs located indoors or well-lit areas less likely targeted by criminals.
Kyo Dolan, Assistant Director for Field Operations at the U.S. Secret Service stated: “The U.S. Secret Service is committed to combating EBT fraud and credit card skimming throughout the country. These proactive operations are aimed at finding and removing devices before criminals can recover the stolen card numbers they contain.” Dolan added: “These operations are only the start... We are working closely with our local state federal and international law enforcement partners to investigate and dismantle criminal organizations that perpetrate these crimes.”
The agency plans continued outreach efforts into 2026.
