AI is making it easier for organized crime to intercept cargo through load boards, data says

AI is making it easier for organized crime to intercept cargo through trucking load boards, new data shows. 

Data recently released by Verisk CargoNet shows that criminal groups have turned to online methods, many that use Artificial Intelligence, to steal cargo instead of swiping the goods from parked trailers. 

“I think the criminals have identified that the weak point between point A and point B is in transportation, right?” Michael Evanoff, chief security officer and strategic advisor for AI-security company Verkada, told Fox News Digital. “So instead of putting yourself in harm’s way by going to a depot or a distribution center, why not capture it in transit?” 

This year, the United States has seen $318 million in losses from stolen goods, with an average value of stolen shipments amounting to $278,797. Instead of heading to truck stops and distribution centers, thieves now utilize malware on online load boards in order to intercept freight. The criminals use these load boards to determine which loads they would like to target, and post as legitimate truckers or trucking companies. 

They [started] using the internet to commit acts of fraud, versus just straight up traditional thefts of stealing the truck at the truck stop or the rest area – and that’s when the fraud started taking off,” said Keith Lewis, vice president of operations at Verisk CargoNet. 

“You can find a load, or a driver and company can find a load to move their equipment,” Lewis said. “That’s where the big problem comes in. We don’t know who we’re talking to on the other end of the – I wouldn’t even say phone line – but the other end of the computer network.” 

Lewis says that many of these load boards now use AI to screen drivers and trucking companies to determine if they are legitimate, and that fooling AI into believing they are legitimate is easier than fooling actual humans. 

“The vetting process has just almost gone out the window,” Lewis said. “So you think about, well, who’s vetting this truck, who’s making sure it’s the right truck or with the right driver? No one is.” 

Some criminals even use fake identification and paperwork to intercept a load. Almost all of the cargo stolen through these virtual means ends up overseas, where it can be sold freely without much risk of being found out. 

“We have tracked these groups to 40-plus countries,” Lewis said. “The bad guys have set up a supply chain that’s somewhat legitimate overseas. When they get across the [ocean] with these goods, they’re not stolen anymore. There’s no tracking. They can move them freely around their country and around the world with no hesitation.”

Currently, researchers and law enforcement say they are focusing on simply identifying the habits of these criminal groups, with very few actively making arrests for the crimes.