Cargo theft has become an increasingly coordinated and sophisticated threat, with 81% of respondents to a survey conducted by DGII reporting it has become more organized in recent years.

The survey, Cargo Theft Report, based on responses from 150 U.S.-based loss and organized retail crime prevention leaders, also found that 79% say their organization is more concerned about cargo theft today than ever before.

The Supply Chain Under Siege

The nature of cargo theft is also evolving rapidly. According to the survey, businesses are facing highly coordinated criminal networks that exploit vulnerabilities across the supply chain using increasingly sophisticated tactics.

Key findings include:

• 63% say cargo theft incidents have increased compared with last year.
• 81% say organized retail crime is a growing concern for their organization.
• 80% say that cargo theft incidents have led to lost sales for their organization.
• 40% report annual losses of at least $1 million due to cargo theft, and 28% report annual losses of more than $2 million.

When asked about cargo theft tactics, respondents identified fraudulent pickups and carrier impersonation (78%), GPS jamming and spoofing (71%), trailer theft (66%), and double brokering (64%) as their top concerns.

“Cargo theft is increasingly a cybersecurity issue as much as it is a physical security issue," said Scott Glenn, vice president of Asset Protection at The Home Depot, in a statement. "If criminals gain access to transportation or logistics systems, they can potentially identify what is being shipped, where it is going and when it will be there. That intelligence can turn a shipment into a very specific target. As criminal organizations become more sophisticated, companies have to think about protecting the data surrounding a shipment just as seriously as they protect the shipment itself.”

The Need for Real-time Visibility and Intelligence

To address the severity of the issue 70% of respondents say their organizations are investing more this year in cargo theft prevention compared to last year.

Overall, the capabilities respondents believe will make the biggest difference in fighting cargo theft include real-time location visibility and data that can be used to identify recurring theft patterns or high-risk routes.

Technology, however, is only one part of the solution. Successfully combatting cargo theft also requires faster coordination and response when incidents occur. Just 37% of respondents say they regularly report incidents and work directly with law enforcement on investigations. Since many thefts go unreported, the true scale of the problem is likely larger than current figures suggest.