Data insights: April 2026 EBT theft trends

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Key findings#key-findings

• New Jersey continues to have the highest theft rate of any state, with skimming concentrated at small independent retailers in northern New Jersey. The unrecognized tap rate rose from 0.29% in February to 0.39% in March.
• South Carolina entered the top 3 for the first time, driven by skimmers at specific retail locations, with the unrecognized tap rate rising to 0.29% in March.
• Arkansas saw the largest month-over-month increase of any state, nearly doubling from 0.21% to 0.36%, though no specific skimmers could be identified.

Propel’s theft detection capabilities#propels-theft-detection-capabilities

Propel serves over 5 million EBT cardholders nationwide who use our app to manage their benefits every month. We analyze transaction and customer-reported data to identify emerging theft patterns through a two-step detection process. First, we identify retailers with unusually high rates of transactions flagged as "unrecognized" by Propel users. These are retailers where stolen benefits appear to be drained or liquidated. Second, we identify skimmer locations by analyzing victims’ shopping patterns in the 8-12 weeks prior to their card being liquidated.

Our insights are intended to provide a snapshot of emerging trends in EBT theft. We generate these analyses early in the month, when theft activity typically peaks following SNAP benefit deposits. Our data reflects real theft activity, but may show a slight upward bias since cardholders are more likely to check the app after experiencing theft. Given the rapidly evolving nature of EBT theft, our insights represent a current snapshot rather than a comprehensive assessment.

Recent theft patterns and spikes#recent-theft-patterns-and-spikes

New Jersey continues to have the highest theft rate of any state, with skimming at small independent retailers worsening since last month. South Carolina is newly elevated into the top 3, with skimming at specific retail chains as the primary vector. Arkansas saw the largest month-over-month increase, though no specific skimmers could be identified.

Nebraska dropped out of the top eight theft states after peaking at a 0.47% unrecognized tap rate in January. Virginia and Maryland, which had significant skimming activity in January, continued to flatten (Maryland) or decline (Virginia) from February to March.

New Jersey skimming at small retailers continues to worsen#new-jersey-skimming-at-small-retailers-continues-to-worsen

In March, New Jersey’s unrecognized tap rate increased from 0.29% to 0.39%, the highest rate of any state in the month. As in February, the geographic pattern points to skimming: unrecognized transaction rates are concentrated in northern counties near New York City, particularly Hudson, Essex, and Passaic counties.

75% of the 2,114 New Jersey users liquidated in March shopped at one of 61 stores identified as likely skimming locations. The skimming is concentrated at small, independent groceries and bodegas in Jersey City, Newark, Paterson, and Bayonne.

Several of these stores were also identified as top skimmers in February. The weekly trend shows New Jersey spiking well above the national average, with the sharpest increases occurring on benefit deposit weeks (New Jersey deposits occur the first five days of each month).

South Carolina skimming activity#south-carolina-skimming-activity

South Carolina entered the top 3 for the first time, with the unrecognized tap rate rising to 0.29% in March. Skimming at specific retail locations is a key vector: four locations of a specific retail chain had future liquidation victim rates above 15%, and 10% of all South Carolina victims shopped at one of these stores prior to liquidation.

The two largest skimming locations are in Spartanburg (in the Northwest corner of the state) and North Charleston (on the Southern coast). Some other stores also have high future liquidation rates, but the volume for any single store isn’t particularly high.

Arkansas theft rate nearly doubled#arkansas-theft-rate-nearly-doubled

Arkansas saw the largest month-over-month increase of any state, rising from 0.21% in February to 0.36% in March. Despite this sharp increase, no specific chain-store skimmers could be identified. The 8 stores with elevated future liquidation rates are small, independent retailers scattered across Little Rock, Jacksonville, and Texarkana.

As in previous months, the geographic pattern suggests skimming rather than a statewide data compromise: elevated theft rates are concentrated in certain counties (rather than spread uniformly across the state) and theft seems to bleed over the Eastern border into Tennessee and Mississippi.

Ongoing support#ongoing-support

Propel is committed to supporting state and federal agencies in protecting SNAP recipients from EBT theft. For questions about our methodology or further analysis, please contact gov@propel.app.