Cargo theft in the second quarter of 2026 was down 5% year over year. Despite that drop, Overhaul has rated the national cargo theft threat level high for the second half of the year.
That’s according to the supply chain visibility and risk management company’s U.S. Q2-2026 Cargo Theft Report, which also noted a 5% increase in cargo theft in Q2 compared to Q1. Overhaul tracked 605 incidents in the U.S. in Q2 with April, May and June accounting for 34%, 35% and 31% of thefts, respectively.
Theft recording firm Verisk CargoNet documented 677 supply chain theft incidents across both the U.S. and Canada in Q2, a 26% decline compared to the same quarter in 2025 and a 14% drop quarter over quarter.
According to CargoNet, Labor Day and the November to December stretch represent the highest-risk windows of the second half of the year.
“Every long weekend is an opportunity for a criminal group that has already done its reconnaissance. The freight doesn't move. The oversight does,” said Michael Fisk, vice president of Roadmaster Group and a senior leader at Tri-State Motor Transit Co., a specialized, high-security motor carrier.
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Heading into the holiday season, Overhaul said it anticipates an increase in cargo theft activity at levels comparable to the second half of 2025. The company estimates an average of 230 to 260 cargo theft incidents per month in the latter half of the year.
A high-risk environment
Fisk said the most dangerous freight thieves today don't break into trailers but impersonate legitimate carriers and forge shipping documents.
It’s a cyber-enabled method that industry experts consistently warn carriers about. Despite that, pilferage remained the most common event type, accounting for 37% in the first quarter and 46% of thefts in the second quarter, according to Overhaul’s data. Deceptive pickups accounted for only 11%.
Fisk noted, however, that standard locks and seals are the most widespread security gap in the industry. Tri-State uses specialized locks designed to cinch trailer doors together instead of securing a single latch point. It also requires drivers to back trailers against walls or docks whenever stopped.
"It used to be about opportunity. A driver leaves a trailer unattended, and someone breaks the lock. That still happens, but the organized groups are doing something far more sophisticated,” Fisk said. “They're hacking into freight brokerage systems, generating fake bills of lading, putting the right decals on a truck and showing up at a shipper's dock with the correct pickup number. Unless that shipper has protocols specifically designed to catch impersonation, they'll hand over the freight without ever knowing it's gone to the wrong truck."
The continued increase in the level of organization and sophistication of criminal groups focusing on high-value cargo is why Overhaul considers risk to be high, the company said in its report.
These are Overhaul’s recommendations:
Take steps to verify the authenticity of all shipment-related activity, particularly any entity which has been engaged to either move or store a shipment. Driver and business verification, prior to releasing any shipment, is paramount.
Diligently vet all carriers and drivers, particularly those operating out of Southern California and those handling highly targeted products such as electronics. The first 200 miles of shipments departing Southern California now account for 37% of all U.S. cargo theft, and electronics were the most targeted product type at 23%, according to Overhaul’s report.
Keep thorough documentation, including photos of the driver’s CDL, the back of the trailer with the seal affixed and seal number visible, identifiable markings on the tractor and trailer, license plates and the BOL.
Look for red flags such as temporary placards or logos, recently painted-over logos, paper or missing license plates and drivers who do not match their CDL photo.
Establish and escalation plan with a path to effective law enforcement engagement.
Use tracking technology on the conveyance power unit, cargo area when separate and the cargo itself to identify suspicious route deviations, unauthorized stops and separation of the cargo from the conveyance.
Fisk added that shippers should look for satellite tracking independent of cell coverage so loads cannot go dark. He also recommended the use of specialized locking systems and real-time cargo door monitoring with alerts.
