A new tool where carriers, shippers, third-party logistics providers and brokers can anonymously report cyber-enabled cargo crimes and cyber threats is now available.
The Threat Report Portal launched by the National Motor Freight Traffic Association encourages transportation and logistics companies that have experienced cyber events, such as ransomware, phishing attacks or network intrusions, or cargo crimes, such as cargo theft or fictitious pickups to share those details. Those companies must join NMFTA’s free Threat Intelligence Network to report incidents and suspicious activity and to see the anonymous submissions from others.
NMFTA Chief Operations and Technical Officer Joe Ohr said this gives those who have been affected and those who could potentially be targeted by cyber threats or cyber-enabled cargo theft a community where they can learn from each other’s experiences about incidents currently affecting the industry and put measures in place to prevent them within their own organizations.
“Threat actors are constantly adapting their tactics, and no single organization has visibility into every threat facing the industry,” he said. “When organizations share what they're experiencing, the entire industry benefits. By combining real-time industry reporting with NMFTA's threat analysis, the portal helps organizations stay informed, communicate emerging risks and take proactive steps to protect their operations.”
Ohr said NMFTA’s threat analysis involves the organization studying these events to create best practices, guidelines, etc. that will be posted in its Freight Fraud Prevention Hub, a unified destination where carriers, shippers, brokers and logistics partners can access educational resources, verification standards (like SCAC Verified) and best practices.
Many of the insights, threat patterns and lessons learned from the portal will be shared at NMFTA’s upcoming Cybersecurity Conference.
Ohr said the portal sends near immediate notifications across network membership when reports are submitted by their peers so members can take preventive action based on real-world incidents.
Cargo theft costs the trucking industry more than $18 million per day, according to research from the American Transportation Research Institute (ATRI). The rising threat of increasingly high-tech freight fraud and cargo theft has prompted Congress to consider passing legislation aimed at curbing these crimes.
The Threat Report Portal launched this week just after a coalition of nearly 200 businesses and trade organizations delivered a joint letter to Senate leadership in support of that legislation.
Ohr said the value of the portal grows with every report submitted, helping build a clearer picture of the threats facing the transportation industry.
This transportation-specific intelligence-sharing network built for real-world trucking operations supports reporting related to ransomware attacks, network intrusions, freight fraud, fictitious pickups, load redirections, identity-based attacks, and other transportation-related cyber and cargo threats.
