The Growing Threat of Cargo Theft

When you pick up a product off the shelf, it’s easy to forget about the complex freight network that helped it get there. Even if you work in a business that sends product out to distributors every day, the inner workings of the freight world can be confusing to navigate. This blind spot leaves many businesses vulnerable to cargo theft.

We were vulnerable, and we paid the price. When criminal actors go ahold of the information for one of our shipments, a six-figure truckload of industrial goods, we were blindsided by how easily they were able to bypass the existing security systems with just a few pieces of data.

As we started investigating, we quickly found more questions than answers. What exactly is “cargo theft”? Where does it occur, and which industries are most affected? To help shed light on this growing issue, we’ve compiled first-party sources to show you how cargo theft is affecting every industry across the US and what’s being done to fight it.

What is Cargo Theft?

“Cargo theft” is defined as the theft of commercial goods from the supply chain. This differs from traditional methods of theft in that businesses are not the target, but rather individual shipments of merchandise.

Much like traditional theft, cargo theft can take many forms, but most experts boil it down to two categories: “straight theft” and “strategic theft,” each of which have their own associated tactics and risk factors. For starters, let’s look at straight theft.

Straight Theft

By far the most prevalent method of cargo theft, “straight theft” is any theft that involves the direct physical removal of goods. These crimes tend to be more opportunistic, with thieves targeting unattended warehouses and trailers for easy access. But don’t let that fool you; the groups behind these attacks can be as sophisticated as any strategic theft operation, albeit with more direct methods. Some of those methods include:

Hijacking

It’s easy to dismiss hijackings as a thing that only happens in movies, but Munich RE shows that hijackings are up significantly year over year from 2023-2024, and account for the largest single source of cargo theft for 2024. While 2025 data hasn’t been fully analyzed yet, it would be safe to assume that hijackings will continue to be an effective tool in the straight theft arsenal.

Trailer Theft

Theft directly from the trailer occurs typically when the trailer is unattended, such as at truck stops or warehouses. This is by far the most opportunistic type of theft but still accounts for around 15% of all cargo theft incidents. Thankfully, this is also the easiest kind of theft to combat, as simple workplace safety adjustments can deny thieves access to unattended valuables.

Vehicle Theft

Less common is the theft of the entire vehicle, trailer and all. While these thefts are rarer, some more sophisticated operations are capable of breaking an entire truck down within an hour, making tracking and recovery of the vehicle nearly impossible, let alone the merchandise.

Pilferage

A catch-all term for a variety of strategies used to gradually skim off small amounts of product from a large number of shipments. Combating pilferage requires tight record-keeping of package weights and integrity in transit. This can include “cluster theft,” where large portions of shipments are stolen at the same time.

Strategic Theft

In contrast with straight theft, “strategic theft” may involve little to no actual contact with the business at all. If contact is required, strategic cargo thieves typically appear as legitimate clients or partners, avoiding suspicion and flying under the radar until it’s far too late. This makes strategic theft even harder to detect and prevent.

According to Munich RE, the United States and Canada are particularly prone to strategic theft, with the US being more strongly affected. Cyber vulnerabilities were highlighted as a primary cause, but there are many tactics these criminals use to strategically gain access to cargo.

Double-Brokering

An unfortunately common practice in the freight industry, “double-brokering” is when a carrier accepts a load from a broker and, without the broker or shipper’s knowledge, brokers the load again to a third-party carrier. While this is lucrative for the carriers who can pocket the difference, it creates significant security and liability risks for shippers and brokers alike.

POP (Point-of-Pickup) Fraud

Criminals employ a variety of strategies at the point of pickup to take possession of freight. One thing all these strategies have in common is that they rely on the inconsistent or nonexistent verification systems currently in use at many distribution centers. By exploiting this gap in the system, bad actors can slip in virtually unnoticed among the daily activity of the shipping yard.

Driver Impersonation

Thieves can get ahold of driver’s license credentials and use them to impersonate the assigned driver. This makes it even more important for CDL holders to be cautious with their personal information and only give out their ID when absolutely necessary.

Carrier Identity Fraud

Using the sophisticated social engineering tools made available to them by AI, scammers can impersonate carriers and divert or misdirect loads. Some brokers even report MCs being sold under the table to bad actors, with cash transactions preventing brokers and shippers from discovering the change in ownership until it’s too late

Load Information Interception

Many distribution centers do very little on-the-spot identity verification, making it possible for savvy criminals to talk their way through the entire check-in process with nothing more than a load number.

Cargo Theft vs Freight Fraud

While some people use the terms interchangeably, “cargo theft” and “freight fraud” represent vastly different challenges for the freight industry to overcome. Simply put, “cargo theft” is the goal, while “freight fraud” is the method. Things like spoofing identifies, falsifying credentials, or impersonating a driver all constitute an element of fraud which is not present in something like a hijacking.

It’s also important to note that, while freight fraud is of particular concern in the US, it is far from the only type of theft our supply chain needs to worry about. Straight theft will continue to be a concern, and attackers will undoubtedly continue to find new ways to work around the systems meant to protect our cargo. However, it’s our responsibility as consumers and producers to take charge of our businesses and close whatever gaps we can ourselves.

As you review the above strategies, you might notice a theme. In nearly every strategy, criminals exploit gaps in our attention. If we’re not paying attention to driver’s licenses, they will use driver’s licenses. If we’re not paying attention to trailers, they’ll steal from the trailers. By taking security seriously and protecting ourselves and our property diligently, we can stop most attacks before they happen.

What’s Most Affected by Cargo Theft?

Cargo theft trends typically follow two distinct paths, which can be understood from the above breakdowns of straight vs. strategic theft. Straight theft is typically more opportunistic and thus tends to follow the overall trends of the market. If it’s a holiday season and more toys are being shipped, more toys will be stolen simply because there are more toys in the supply chain.

On the other hand, strategic theft tends to follow larger macro-economic trends, indicating deliberate targeting of specific goods based on market value and demand. Some of the most affected types of cargo are:

Copper

With its use in electronics and new home construction, copper is a prime target for thieves. No other raw material comes close, likely because copper sits at a vulnerable position where it’s valuable enough to steal but not valuable enough to transport like precious metals.

Food

As food costs continue to rise, cargo theft will inevitably affect food suppliers. In fact, per Verisk, food and beverage products were the most common targets of cargo theft in Q3 2025 by a wide margin, beating out copper and household goods combined.

Energy Drinks

Energy drinks are thought to be targeted due to their ease of transport, high resale value, and relative ease of resale. A recent bust of over $100,000 in energy drinks was linked to thieves who had previously stolen over $3 million in TVs, showing that these commodities are firmly in the crosshairs of even the largest cargo theft operations.

Meat & Seafood

Verisk reports that meat and seafood product thefts are up significantly year over year, indicating a growing demand for these increasingly valuable foodstuffs. Just recently, over $400,000 worth of lobster was stolen in transit to Costco by criminals posing as a legitimate freight carrier.

Consumer Goods

Apparel & household goods are also targets for cargo theft, with travelers.com reporting that household goods thefts are up significantly year over year. In contrast, apparel thefts have held mostly steady.

Electronics

There are many factors working together to drive up the price of electronics, from tariffs to Ai-induced parts shortages. Unfortunately, these all make electronics a prime target for cargo thieves.

Pharmaceuticals

Notable in its relative absence is pharmaceutical theft, with travelers.com reporting that thefts of pharmaceuticals were only half as prevalent as thefts of beauty products. This may be because these materials are typically more strictly controlled or shipped only partially mixed.

Is Cargo Theft on the Rise?

Short answer: yes. Per over-haul.com, cargo theft has trended up year-over-year for the past five years. Verisk shows similar numbers, showing a 32% year-over-year increase in straight theft incidents from 2023-2024.

However, these numbers alone don’t tell the whole story. Per Verisk’s year-end report, cargo theft trends are changing rapidly year over year. As an example, hijackings made up only 11% of cargo theft incidents in 2023 but rose all the way to 21% in 2024.

As the landscape continues to change, we can expect the methods of attack to continue to change alongside it. Shippers and carriers will need to work together to keep drivers and products safe.

Where Does Cargo Theft Happen?

Unsurprisingly, cargo theft trends closely follow general shipping trends. The top states for cargo theft include California, Texas, Illinois, and New Jersey. With major population centers like New York City and Chicago driving increased freight traffic, it's natural that areas like these are prime targets for cargo theft.

Outside of these geographic hotspots, the specific locations where cargo theft occurs vary wildly by method. Many strategic thefts occur at the distribution center or point of pickup, but places like rest stops are more vulnerable to straight theft.

What’s Being Done to Fight Cargo Theft?

As it becomes increasingly clear how much is lost to cargo theft every year, more and more organizations are working to address the issues affecting our supply chains.

Notable Companies

The Freight Fraud Task Force – A powerhouse of an organization working to bring together the best and brightest minds in the freight industry to tackle the problem of fraud.

Highway.com - An online platform focused on verifying carrier identity, with fantastic resources for industry professionals and laymen alike

On|Sight - Naturally, we have to mention ourselves here. We’re working tirelessly to close critical security gaps in point-of-pickup and identity verification.

Freight Industry Events

Driver Legitimacy Summit - Described as “A closed-window industry intervention on CDL legitimacy, liability, and authorization,” featuring some of the industry’s leading experts.

Broker-Carrier Summit - A unique mastermind of brokers and carriers with the goal of improving both sides of the freight ecosystem.

Pending Legislation

Safeguarding Our Supply Chains Act - This act would establish a Supply Chain Fraud and Theft Task Force under the DHS, elevating supply chain theft from an economic issue to a matter of national security

Combating Organized Retail Crime Act - The CORC would establish the Organized Retail and Supply Chain Crime Coordination Center, and helps amend existing legislation to shut off currently available routes for criminals

However, these pieces of legislation still leave gaps in the network which bad actors can find ways to exploit. For example, the FMCSA does not currently have or plan to draft any rules regarding double-brokering, and neither of the above pieces of legislation address it as a possible attack vector. This shows that there is still significant work to be done in ensuring that customers are protected from fraud and theft throughout our supply chain.

Is it Really that Bad?

Absolutely. Cargo theft is a problem not only for every business in America, but for every consumer. With cargo theft amounting to roughly $35 billion annually, it’s estimated that every family in America loses roughly $500 in value every year. Trends show this is only going to increase as inflation and cost of goods increases, and it’s only a matter of time before your business is affected, too.

The best way to prevent cargo theft is to develop robust working relationships with people in your supply chain. Make sure your broker is someone you can trust, and your shipper uses proper identity verification tools to keep your product safe. Partner with people who adhere to strict security protocols and prioritize safety over convenience. All of us have a part to play in making our network safer for everyone.

If you want to discuss getting your distribution center set up with a robust identity verification system, contact us today!