CHARLOTTESVILLE, VA (CVILLE RIGHT NOW) – The Virginia Department of Social Services is spreading the word about fraudulent phone calls and text messages targeting Virginia residents who utilize SNAP EBT accounts.

The VDSS said, in an alert issued Wednesday, the messages claim that an EBT transaction was declined or that suspicious activity was detected on the recipient’s card.

VDSS said recipients of these messages should not respond, call the provided numbers or share any personal, financial, or EBT card information. They should also use the official EBT service phone number, 1-866-281-2448, to verify account-related concerns.

Examples of this can include messages that read “Omnilert – VDSS EBT: An Order of $44.15 at Walmart using your EBT was declined. Reply Y if this was you. If not, call: 1-866-202-4567”

Others can provide a fake declined order, like “VDSS EBT – A transaction of $34.15 at W-STR using your EBT Card was declined. Reply Y if this was you. If not, to speak to a representative, call: +1(866)202-4567.”

Another example given told the recipient there was suspicious activity on their card and read “Transaction alert from electronic Financial Services. Regard. This isn’t transaction alert from electronic Financial Services. Regarding your EBT card, we noticed some unusual activity. Please confirm if you placed this transaction.”

As a whole, VDSS encouraged EBT cardholders to exercise caution when receiving any unexpected messages or calls concerning their accounts.