DALLAS, Jan. 26, 2026 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) — Highway, the leading provider of Carrier Identity® solutions, today released its Q4 2025 Freight Fraud Index, detailing a clear shift in stolen-load activity driven by gaps in identity and authorization. By year-end, direct thefts accounted for nearly half of reported stolen loads, increasingly tied to carriers with legitimate operating histories, real equipment and familiarity with broker and shipper workflows.
“Direct theft is the hardest to combat because these carriers were once trusted. There’s no crystal ball to predict when someone with a clean history is going to break bad, and we’re seeing the same playbook show up across channels. In 2025, Highway blocked 1,986,995 fraudulent email attempts, up 117% from 914,719 in 2024, flagged and blocked 8,525,962 fraudulent phone numbers, and issued 9,129 identity alerts across our network,” said Michael Grace, Vice President of Risk at Highway.
Highway’s Q4 2025 analysis highlights three primary fraud vectors affecting brokers and their carrier networks: direct theft (carrier-involved theft), compromised inboxes and manipulated identities, including ownership changes or “sold MC” scenarios.
Highway also flagged a late-2025 emerging trend in which a load is picked up legitimately, then compromised mid-transit through spoofed calls or lookalike-domain emails that request a reroute to a fraudulent drop location. Before a driver proceeds, reroutes should be verified using the original trusted contact information and updated written and verbal authorization, given the elevated risk they pose.
Among the most targeted commodities in the analysis were food and beverage, electronics, copper, protein powder and cosmetics. The report also points to California, New York, Illinois, Texas and Indiana as key areas of activity. Those patterns mirror recent industry coverage, including a Transport Topics report on ATRI research that found cargo theft is most likely near major freight and logistics hubs.
The broader freight industry is seeing the same escalation in sophistication. A recent Trucking Dive report described how organized groups identify high-value freight and move it to “dummy drop sites,” a pattern that reflects how quickly trusted access can be exploited once a bad actor gains influence over load decisions. When criminals operate under a credible identity or inside routine communication channels, the theft often looks like a normal execution at first. That is why Highway’s report emphasizes verification at moments that change risk, including reroutes, contact changes and late-stage instruction updates.
Ultimately, risk rises further during peak shipping periods, when teams are handling more loads and more exceptions simultaneously. In its holiday risk outlook, Commercial Carrier Journal reported that the holiday surge brings “cargo theft incidents and losses due to fraud,” underscoring how urgency can pressure standard procedures. In that environment, Highway recommends treating exception requests as verification checkpoints and confirming that the people making changes are authorized to act, not simply assuming legitimacy based on past performance or a familiar company name.
Across each fraud vector, the same weakness appears: identity and authorization get assumed. Highway recommends controls that verify the authorized carrier before tendering, validate dispatcher and driver contacts using trusted sources, confirm key identifiers and any contact changes, and require updated written authorization for reroutes and other in-transit exceptions.
The Q4 2025 Freight Fraud Index Report is available now. To learn more about Highway’s Carrier Identity® solutions, visit highway.com.
About Highway
Highway is the leading technology provider specializing in Carrier Identity® solutions for freight brokers, empowering them to reduce fraud and streamline the digital booking process. By automating compliance, Highway gives brokers the ability to enforce an all-new standard, enabling them to efficiently identify the right carrier for every load and build their network with speed and security. With a commitment to transparency, trust, and truth, Highway equips brokers with the data necessary to focus on delivering exceptional service while driving business growth without fear of fraud. For more information, visit highway.com.
Media Contact:
Jessie Thomas
jessie@highway.com
813-777-9599
A photo accompanying this announcement is available at https://www.globenewswire.com/NewsRoom/AttachmentNg/24e8f417-ad79-477f-b2b6-920702063880
