If you receive SNAP in South Carolina, starting Tuesday, April 28, 2026, your EBT card will have a new default restriction: you will not be able to use it to shop online or at any location outside of South Carolina. The South Carolina Department of Social Services (SCDSS) announced on April 22 the rollout of new fraud-prevention measures that will affect every EBT cardholder in the state without exception.
All EBT cards issued in the state will automatically be placed in a status called «Block High Risk Transactions.» Under this setting, any purchase attempted outside the state’s borders or through e-commerce platforms will be declined at the point of sale. In-person purchases at authorized retailers within South Carolina will continue to work normally.
Why the state is taking this step
Electronic theft of EBT benefits is, according to state officials, a nationwide crisis that costs millions of dollars every single day. Criminals install skimming devices on payment terminals to copy EBT card data and then drain victims’ balances — often in other states or through online transactions, which makes detection and recovery of the stolen funds far more difficult.
The situation worsened at the end of 2024, when Congress failed to renew the federal authorization that had allowed states to reimburse recipients for benefits stolen through skimming or other forms of electronic fraud. Since December 20, 2024, South Carolina is no longer permitted to replace stolen SNAP funds, which makes prevention the only real line of defense available to recipients.
How to unlock your card if you need to shop online or out of state
The SCDSS has made clear that recipients retain full control over their EBT account and can temporarily unlock their card whenever they need to make an online or out-of-state purchase. There are three ways to do this:
The first is to log in to the EBT Cardholder Portal at ConnectEBT.com and update the security settings. The second is to use the ConnectEBT mobile app, available for both iOS and Android devices. The third is to call the EBT Customer Service line at 1-800-554-5268, which is available 24 hours a day.
Authorities are urging all cardholders to familiarize themselves with the unlocking process before April 28 to avoid any disruption at checkout. Once the purchase is completed, the card can be locked again for added security.
What this means in practice
For the vast majority of SNAP recipients in South Carolina, this change will have no impact on their regular grocery shopping at authorized stores within the state. The restriction will mainly affect those who use their EBT card on platforms such as Amazon Fresh or Walmart.com, or those who travel outside the state and need to use their benefits elsewhere.
South Carolina is not the first state to take this approach. Several other states have implemented similar default-block settings in response to the surge in skimming fraud, a trend that has escalated sharply in recent years as criminals have refined their techniques. The key point, authorities stress, is that the block does not reduce benefits in any way — the monthly balance remains exactly the same — but adds a layer of security that each recipient can manage according to their own needs.