[{"@context":"https:\/\/schema.org\/","@type":"BlogPosting","@id":"https:\/\/foodstamps.org\/Blog\/ID\/33\/using-social-media-to-sell-food-stamps#BlogPosting","mainEntityOfPage":"https:\/\/foodstamps.org\/Blog\/ID\/33\/using-social-media-to-sell-food-stamps","headline":"Using Social Media to Sell Food Stamps","name":"Using Social Media to Sell Food Stamps","description":"Social media platforms like Twitter and Facebook aren\u2019t just used to communicate with others, as many people use them to illegally buy and sell food stamps.","datePublished":"2018-07-06","dateModified":"2018-07-29","author":{"@type":"Person","@id":"https:\/\/foodstamps.org\/author\/admin#Person","name":"admin","url":"https:\/\/foodstamps.org\/author\/admin","image":{"@type":"ImageObject","@id":"https:\/\/secure.gravatar.com\/avatar\/e26111862ca029071a00a76fae48c51b?s=96&d=mm&r=g","url":"https:\/\/secure.gravatar.com\/avatar\/e26111862ca029071a00a76fae48c51b?s=96&d=mm&r=g","height":96,"width":96}},"publisher":{"@type":"Organization","name":"FoodStamps.org","logo":{"@type":"ImageObject","@id":"https:\/\/foodstamps.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2018\/07\/FS_Logo-2.png","url":"https:\/\/foodstamps.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2018\/07\/FS_Logo-2.png","width":600,"height":60}},"image":{"@type":"ImageObject","@id":"https:\/\/foodstamps.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2018\/07\/FS_Logo-2.png","url":"https:\/\/foodstamps.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2018\/07\/FS_Logo-2.png","width":100,"height":100},"url":"https:\/\/foodstamps.org\/Blog\/ID\/33\/using-social-media-to-sell-food-stamps","about":["Foodstamp Tactics","News"],"wordCount":705,"keywords":["33"],"articleBody":"Social media platforms like Twitter and Facebook aren\u2019t just used to communicate with others, as many people use them to illegally buy and sell food stamps. But are users taking too big a risk by posting their ads in such a public spot?CraigslistSelling food stamps on Craigslist is nothing too new, and a quick search on different cities pulls up dozens of ads. For example, a post from\u00a0February 5th in Atlanta, Georgia\u00a0titled \u201cNeeding to buy food stamps\u2014$150\u201d has the following message: Hello. I\u2019m needing to buy 300 to 400 of food stamps for $150 to $200. Will buy whatever you are willing to offer. Can\u2019t pay full price for groceries because of income. It\u2019s for my family. They have no other way of obtaining food. I hope this could be an ongoing thing if you want it to be. Have a blessed day. Thank you for your time and may you have beautiful days ahead. Meanwhile, a\u00a0February 11th post from Eric in Philadelphia\u00a0has this to say: my food stamps cut on 12am midnight which will be 2\/11\/14 I will receive $189 in food stamps on my access card ..I want $130 cash them ..we can meet up at a super market \u2026 I also have a MetroPCS motion LG with 30 days of service I just got it activated yesterday 2\/09\/14 I still have the receipt and paper work from the Metropcs corporate store on ***** I can give u all my account info I want $70 for it that\u2019s a good deal call or text me ********** eric Reading these ads\u2014and others\u2014is more than just scoffing at the food stamps fraud that\u2019s being committed on a daily basis; these people are poor and desperate and just about willing to sell anything they can so they can feed themselves and their families, even if it means going without the things that are vital to getting a job (e.g. a phone and a phone number).TwitterThe Twitterverse is an interesting place to look at food stamps being sold because it happens in real time. And it\u2019s also a platform where you\u2019re not limited to searching by city, so you can see what\u2019s happening in the whole country all at once.\u201dMiss Lady\u201d from apparently Houston uses the twitter handle\u00a0@MsLadyJoycelynn, has over 8,000 followers, and sent out a tweet on February 21st asking, \u201cAnybody know anyone in Houston selling food stamps?\u201d It was retweeted, which only serves to perpetuate the fraud being committed. It\u2019s also a risky venture, because authorities in charge of eliminating fraud can easily create a Twitter handle and bait the seller.YouTubeGoing on the world\u2019s most popular social media platform quickly turns up three separate pages for food stamps, each one as dismaying as the next. For example, one page is called \u201cHow u gone sell all yo food stamps, n aint no food in yo house?\u201d This page features a whole lot of swearing and coarse language, with the occasional plea for food stamps thrown in.The other two pages are a mixture of disgust and pity, with one page called \u201c\u00a0Selling Food Stamps For Crack\u201d, which seems to mostly be a forum for people to snigger at the problem and trade foul-mouthed insults. But the page that really speaks to the plight of the impoverished is called \u201cWho Got Some Food Stamps 4 Sale?\u201d Here, users can\u2019t hide how much they need money.Selling food stamps may be illegal\u2014regardless of where it takes place\u2014but its move to social media shows how savvy SNAP recipients have become, and what lengths they\u2019re willing to go to in order to get by."},{"@context":"https:\/\/schema.org\/","@type":"BreadcrumbList","itemListElement":[{"@type":"ListItem","position":1,"name":"Blog","item":"https:\/\/foodstamps.org\/Blog\/#breadcrumbitem"},{"@type":"ListItem","position":2,"name":"ID","item":"https:\/\/foodstamps.org\/Blog\/\/ID\/#breadcrumbitem"},{"@type":"ListItem","position":3,"name":"33","item":"https:\/\/foodstamps.org\/Blog\/\/ID\/\/33\/#breadcrumbitem"},{"@type":"ListItem","position":4,"name":"Using Social Media to Sell Food Stamps","item":"https:\/\/foodstamps.org\/Blog\/ID\/33\/using-social-media-to-sell-food-stamps#breadcrumbitem"}]}]