The cargo theft panel includes, from left: Cornell, Rasmor, Spinelli and Ben Wilkens, director of cybersecurity at NMFTA.
Key Takeaways:
- At the Sept. 30 NMFTA Cybersecurity Conference in Long Beach, experts said frontline workers remain essential to trucking cybersecurity despite growing use of technology.
- Panelists said cargo thieves increasingly use cybercrime tactics such as load redirection and identity theft, making human oversight critical alongside automated tools.
- Experts urged companies to expand worker training, strengthen shipper coordination and reward employees who identify suspicious activity to improve cargo theft prevention.
LONG BEACH, Calif. — Frontline workers across the trucking industry play a critical role in cybersecurity, and companies need to invest in training and tools that help them identify threats, experts said.
“Please don’t take that human touch away from it,” said Scott Cornell, chairman of the Transported Asset Protection Association, during a Sept. 30 session at the National Motor Freight Traffic Association Cybersecurity Conference 2026. “If you just lean into the technology only, it will fail you every day. And honestly, it’s not the technology failing you, it’s the people [who] aren’t using the technology right. Or you don’t have enough people to use the technology.”
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Panelists at the three-day event noted that criminal organizations have expanded cargo theft strategies beyond traditional tactics and rely more heavily on cybercrime. Schemes involving load redirections and identity theft have heightened the need for stronger cybersecurity practices throughout the supply chain. Experts emphasized that as cargo theft schemes become more sophisticated, the importance of keeping humans involved to counter them becomes more crucial.
“I know deepfakes and everything have started making that more difficult,” said Shawn Rasmor, principal product manager at Truckstop. “But it’s having the conversations, keeping your network small, really building that up. Don’t put in automation and all these other procedures without humans involved.”
Cornell said some clients have told him they were able to reduce the size of their vetting teams after purchasing expensive technology platforms. He cautioned against that approach, arguing that technology and personnel must work together.
“We’re still in that cat-and-mouse game right now,” added Danielle Spinelli, director of partnerships at GenLogs. “You still need somebody there looking at things and having that Spidey sense, and then having the tech there to throw up the signals for you.”
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Spinelli said cargo theft prevention is not a black-and-white issue because criminals are constantly looking for new vulnerabilities to exploit. Technology can help identify warning signs, she added, but it is most effective when paired with human oversight.
“You can validate, ‘This is actually who I’m working with,’ ” Spinelli said. “Especially being in lockstep with shippers and knowing that, ‘This is who’s supposed to be pulling up and picking this up,’ and having them be on board and educating them. We’re all in this together.”
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Cornell argued that shipping represents one of the industry’s biggest vulnerabilities because of the volume of activity surrounding warehouses and distribution centers. He said the industry can no longer rely on the assumption that brokers and carriers alone are responsible for combating cargo theft.
“Bad guys are like rainwater running down your roof, they’re just looking for the first crack that they can pour into,” Cornell said. “There’s technology out there now — on a tablet or on a phone — that will simply take a picture of the driver’s license and the truck, and will tell you instantly, ‘This is the right driver, this truck belongs to the right company.’ ”
Cornell said he trains clients on how to identify and respond to suspicious activity, including teaching dockworkers how to recognize red flags involving trucks and drivers and how to safely question individuals who appear suspicious.
“Unfortunately, dockworkers and gate security have probably the highest churn rate, so it’s hard to even train somebody and then all of a sudden they’re gone,” Spinelli said.
But Rasmor said even high-turnover positions can benefit from basic training. Rather than focusing solely on extensive vetting processes, he said companies should teach workers how to recognize unusual situations and when to seek assistance.
Arpan Podduturi of Samsara examines how AI, telematics and onboard cameras are converging to protect drivers and reduce risk. Tune in above or by going to RoadSigns.ttnews.com.
“Making sure that they’re aware these things happen, these signals come in. Bring in the manager, bring in someone else, escalate up,” Rasmor said. “That needs to be a part of the training; how to handle if you spot these things.”
Cornell stressed the importance of recognizing staff who help thwart attacks.
“We have to encourage it,” he said. “You stand people up, you highlight them when they find or catch some things. Give them a $50 gift card to take their family to dinner or something like that. But there has to be more carrot, more incentive.”
