The logistics and shipping industries are facing a massive surge in cyber-enabled physical crime. According to recent threat intelligence from Proofpoint researchers, hackers are increasingly infiltrating trucking companies and logistics platforms to facilitate targeted cargo theft and divert payments.
These operations are often tightly linked to organized crime syndicates. By exploiting remote access vulnerabilities and payment systems, attackers can spoof delivery details, reroute physical shipments, and siphon funds before the theft is detected. The financial impact is staggering, with losses in North America attributed to these cyber-physical operations reaching an estimated $6.6 billion in 2025 alone.
How to check if you’re affected
Organizations operating within the supply chain, logistics, or transportation sectors must immediately harden their external attack surface and internal verification processes:
- Audit Remote Access: Review all remote access points (VPNs, RDP, vendor portals) for multi-factor authentication (MFA) enforcement.
- Verify Payment Changes: Implement strict, out-of-band verification procedures (such as a voice call to a known, established contact number) for any requested changes to payment routing or delivery destinations.
- Monitor Logistics Portals: Check access logs for your freight-matching and dispatch software for anomalous logins, particularly from unusual geographic locations or at odd hours.