Cargo Theft Trends & Statistics

Cargo theft is rising as criminals use more sophisticated fraud, cyber tactics, and organized schemes. For shippers, that shifts the problem from physical security to verification: knowing who is actually picking up a load, where it is, and what changed since dispatch. This report covers the latest cargo theft trends, regional hotspots, common tactics, and ways to reduce exposure.

Key Cargo Theft Statistics

Cargo theft trends show rising theft frequency and financial losses, with criminals increasingly targeting high-value, easy-to-resell freight.

• CargoNet recorded 2,646 confirmed thefts in 2025, up from 2,243 in 2024.
• Total losses from cargo theft increased by 60%, reaching an estimated $725 million.
• Average losses reached $273,990, a 36% increase from 2024.
• Food and beverage theft rose 47%, while metals theft increased 77%.
• Trucks accounted for 67% of U.S. incidents, down from 78% in 2024, while insider involvement doubled to 6%.
• Globally, BSI Consulting and TT Club put trucks at 70% of all incidents and insider cooperation at 22%.
• Fictitious pickups, double brokering, fake documents, and impersonation became more common.

Global and Regional Cargo Theft Trends

Drawing on claims from the BSI Consulting and TT Club 2025 Cargo Theft Report, we examine global and regional cargo theft trends.

North America

North America’s 2025 cargo theft trends centered on high-value, easy-to-resell goods and a noticeable shift in the transportation modes thieves targeted.

• Hijacking led U.S. cargo theft tactics at 20% of incidents, followed by theft from vehicle (16%), theft of vehicle (15%), and theft from facility (14%).
• Rail theft climbed to 10% of U.S. incidents in 2025, up from 4% in 2024, with organized networks using stolen credentials and GPS tampering.
• California and Texas were the top U.S. cargo theft hotspots in 2025, accounting for 31% and 15% of incidents, respectively.
• In Mexico, hijacking remained the leading method, with armed groups using road blockades and expanding into rail cargo.

Europe

Across Europe, cargo theft remained a significant supply chain risk in 2025, with Germany (27%), Italy (13%), the UK (9%), France (6%), and Spain (6%) recording the highest numbers of incidents.

• Warehouses accounted for 33% of European theft locations, ahead of parking lots (15%) and rest areas (11%).
• Theft from facility led all methods at 30%, followed by theft from vehicle (17%) and vehicle theft (15%). Electronics were the most targeted commodity at 15%.
• Strategic theft increased as criminals used fictitious pickups and impersonation of transport companies to intercept shipments, including thieves posing as pickup drivers in Görlitz, Germany.

South America

In-transit theft and hijacking continued to define cargo theft across South America in 2025, with organized crime driving both volume and violence.

• Brazil accounted for the largest single share of global cargo theft incidents at 22%, followed by Argentina (5%) and Chile (3%).
• Organized groups use force to stop trucks and steal both cargo and vehicles, with in-transit theft the most common method across the region.
• Criminals pair physical force with GPS jamming, document fraud, and compromised carrier accounts to defeat tracking before a load is recovered.
• Hijackings put truck operators at serious risk, making driver safety a major concern for cargo theft across South America.

Asia

Cargo theft and smuggling increased across Asia in 2025, with India, Indonesia, China, Bangladesh, and Vietnam most affected.

• Half of all Asian incidents occurred at warehouses and production sites, with trucks involved in just 36%.
• Port and transfer-point theft exploits weak inventory controls, insider access, pilferage, and gaps during custody handoffs. Insider involvement reached 22% of regional thefts, concentrated in India, China, and Indonesia.
• Cyber-enabled theft is rising as criminals create fake driver and company accounts on freight platforms for fraud-based cargo theft.
• Sea piracy across Asian waters rose 85% in the first half of 2025 to its highest level in nearly a decade, with a 281% year-over-year surge in the Strait of Malacca and Singapore.

Countries Most Affected by Cargo Theft

Cargo theft risks vary by country, shaped by local infrastructure, organized crime, enforcement gaps, and supply chain vulnerabilities.

Country (share of global incidents)	Common types of theft	Underlying causes	2025 trends
Brazil (22%)	In-transit theft, hijacking, document fraud, GPS interference, and insider theft.	Organized crime, fraud, technology, and insider involvement drive losses.	Remained a major threat, with criminals using GPS interference and other technology to target high-value shipments.
Mexico (15%)	Hijacking, in-transit theft, vehicle theft, and blockades.	Organized crime and heavy freight traffic increase the risk of in-transit theft.	Hijacking remains the leading method, with organized groups expanding into rail cargo theft.
India (13%)	Facility, insider, pilferage, and vehicle theft.	Weak inventory controls and insider collusion make warehouses and production facilities key theft risks.	Rise in insider involvement and in pharmaceutical theft, historically infrequent in the market.
United States (11%)	Fictitious pickups, vehicle and trailer theft, double and triple brokering, facility theft, and rail theft.	High freight volumes, major ports, unsecured staging areas, cybersecurity gaps, and fragmented enforcement create multiple opportunities for theft.	Increase in rail theft as organized groups used stolen credentials, fake identities, fraudulent carrier accounts, GPS tampering, and route diversions.
Indonesia (5%)	Facility, insider, vehicle, and maritime theft.	Insider collusion, weak inventory controls, economic pressures, and inconsistent enforcement increase the risk of theft across the region.	Piracy rose across regional waters before targeted arrests helped moderate activity later in 2025.
Germany (3%)	Facility, vehicle, slash-and-grab, and fictitious pickup theft.	Warehouse vulnerabilities, major freight corridors, and unsecured parking areas increase the risk of theft.	Driver impersonation and electronics theft were among the biggest cargo theft risks.
China (3%)	Facility theft, insider theft, bulk commodity theft, and cyber-enabled strategic theft.	Complex supply chains, insider collusion, weak controls, and freight-platform vulnerabilities create more opportunities for theft.	Rare earth mineral theft emerged as a concern as organized groups also targeted coal and grain using fake driver and company accounts.

Methods and Tactics Used in Cargo Theft

Cargo thieves combine physical attacks, fraud, cyber-enabled schemes, and insider access to steal or divert shipments at different points across the supply chain.

Physical Theft

Physical theft occurs when cargo is taken directly from trucks, warehouses, or other freight locations. Examples range from hijackings and warehouse break-ins to theft from vehicles parked at unsecured lots or rest stops.

Fraud-Based Theft

Fraud-based theft uses deception to gain control of a shipment. Common tactics include fictitious pickups, carrier or driver impersonation, fake documentation, and double brokering.

Cyber-Enabled Theft

Cyber-enabled theft leverages compromised logistics data and digital tools to divert shipments. Common tactics include phishing, email compromise, fake identities or company accounts, data scraping, AI-assisted targeting, and misuse of freight platforms.

Insider Involvement

Insider-enabled theft occurs when employees, drivers, contractors, or other trusted parties misuse their access to support cargo theft. Examples include sharing sensitive shipment details, helping organized theft groups, or using authorized access to remove cargo without permission.

Role of Organized Crime in Cargo Theft

Organized groups drive a large share of cargo theft because they study freight networks rather than wait for opportunity.

• Criminal groups target high-value, easy-to-resell goods and use shipment data, insider access, and logistics intelligence to identify vulnerable loads and move stolen cargo across borders.
• Tactics such as carrier impersonation, fictitious pickups, cargo diversion, and hijacking allow these groups to operate at scale.
• Insider cooperation appears in 22% of global incidents, which is why vetting has to extend past carriers to the people with access to shipment data.

Expert Perspectives on Cargo Theft

Keith Lewis, vice president of operations at Verisk CargoNet, attributes rising losses to criminal enterprises becoming more selective about high-value shipments.

BSI Consulting and TT Club point to layered defense over single-point security: shipment tracking, personnel and carrier vetting, cybersecurity controls, secure parking, and industry information sharing working together rather than in isolation.

The gap we see most often at mid-market shippers isn’t physical security — it’s carrier verification. A fictitious pickup defeats a well-locked yard, because the load leaves through the front gate with paperwork that looks correct.

Mitigation and Prevention Strategies

Cargo theft prevention requires layered security, including carrier vetting, shipment visibility, physical safeguards, employee training, and response procedures.

Strengthen Carrier Vetting

Verify carrier identities, conduct background checks, and watch for signs of fraudulent operators. Add extra verification for any unexpected changes.

Improve Visibility

Leverage real-time tracking, geofencing, and secure communication to monitor shipments in transit.

Secure Parking & Routing

Prioritize secure parking facilities, limit unnecessary stops, and avoid leaving loaded trailers unattended in unsecured locations.

Employee Training

Train drivers, dispatchers, warehouse staff, and transportation teams to recognize phishing attempts, social engineering, suspicious pickup requests, and unusual changes to shipment instructions.

Leverage Technology

Use predictive analytics, intrusion detection, tamper-evident seals, and GPS tracking to strengthen shipment security.

Build a Response Plan

Establish clear incident-response workflows and crisis-communication procedures before theft occurs.

What These Trends Mean for Shippers

The rise in cargo theft is forcing shippers to shoulder replacement costs, delivery delays, customer disruption, higher security expenses, and more complicated insurance claims.

Fraud-based theft defeats a shipment even when trucks, warehouses, and physical security measures are in place. Higher-value losses also drive insurance costs, inventory availability, customer commitments, and transportation budgets.

This is where a Managed Transportation model changes the shipper’s position. Because we’re non-asset and carry zero conflict of interest, we vet carriers on the shipper’s behalf with no carrier alignment to protect — the verification step fraud-based theft depends on defeating. Logistics data does the rest: exceptions surface as they happen rather than at delivery.

Shippers evaluating that model should understand what a 3PL does and how a partner vets carriers, manages exceptions, and maintains shipment visibility.

How to Reduce Your Risk Today

Shippers can close the most common gaps in 30 days by working through carrier records, lane exposure, visibility, and team readiness in that order.

1. Audit carriers: Reverify authority, insurance, contacts, and driver details.
2. Map high-risk lanes: Flag theft-prone routes, stops, and facilities.
3. Improve visibility: Track shipments and set alerts for unusual activity.
4. Train teams: Build recognition of fraud, phishing, and suspicious changes into daily workflows.

Conclusion

Cargo theft is becoming more coordinated, fraud-driven, and organized, raising the stakes for shippers and logistics providers. Companies that strengthen carrier controls, improve shipment visibility, and layer physical, digital, and operational safeguards will be better positioned to reduce the risk of theft and protect supply chain performance.

Cargo theft is a verification problem before it’s a security problem. If you want a clear view of how your carriers are vetted and where your network carries exposure, let’s talk.

FAQs

What types of cargo are most frequently targeted by thieves?

Food and beverage, metals, electronics, pharmaceuticals, and other high-value or easy-to-resell goods are common targets.

What role does technology play in both enabling and preventing cargo theft?

Criminals use technology for phishing, impersonation, and shipment diversion, while shippers use GPS, geofencing, analytics, and authentication to detect and prevent theft.

How can small and mid-sized businesses protect themselves against cargo theft?

Small and mid-sized businesses reduce risk through stronger carrier vetting, shipment visibility, secure parking, and employee training.

What should a company do immediately after discovering a cargo theft incident?

Report the theft, notify transportation partners and insurers, preserve shipment records, and follow the company’s incident response plan.

Are there specific times of year when cargo theft is more common?

Cargo theft risk rises around holidays and extended weekends, when freight sits unattended for longer periods.

How does cargo theft affect insurance premiums and coverage?

Higher theft exposure leads to higher premiums, stricter security requirements, larger deductibles, and tighter coverage terms.

Sources

BSI Consulting & TT Club. (2026). BSI Consulting and TT Club 2025 Cargo Theft Report. TT Club. https://www.ttclub.com/fileadmin/uploads/tt-club/Documents/Corporate_Literature/TT_Club_BSI_2025_Cargo_Theft_Report_FINAL.pdf

BSI. (2026). TT Club and BSI report rise in cargo theft as criminal tactics evolve. BSI Group. https://www.bsigroup.com/en-US/insights-and-media/media-center/press-releases/2026/april/tt-club-and-bsi-report-rise-in-cargo-theft-as-criminal-tactics-evolve/

CargoNet. (2026). Cargo theft losses surge to an estimated $725 million in 2025, Verisk CargoNet analysis reveals. CargoNet. https://www.cargonet.com/news-and-events/cargonet-in-the-media/2025-theft-trends/

Sheer Logistics. (n.d.). Managed transportation services for shippers. Sheer Logistics. https://sheerlogistics.com/managed-transportation-services/

Sheer Logistics. (n.d.). What is a 3PL brokerage? Sheer Logistics. https://sheerlogistics.com/blog/what-is-a-3pl-brokerage/

Fryer, N. (2026). Logistics data: Transforming business operations and driving success. Sheer Logistics. https://sheerlogistics.com/blog/logistics-data-transforming-business-operations-and-driving-success/