The cyber war on trucking, logistics & supply chain — 2025–2026 threat analysis.
Ransomware attacks on transport and logistics more than doubled in 2025. $725M was stolen through cyber-enabled cargo fraud. Trucking fleets absorbed 71% of all ransomware hits. The full threat analysis — and a defense playbook.
Ransomware attacks on transport and logistics more than doubled in 2025. $725 million was stolen through cyber-enabled cargo fraud. Trucking fleets absorbed 71% of all ransomware hits. This is a comprehensive threat analysis — and a defense playbook.
Why hackers chose trucking
American trucking is a $940 billion industry that moves 72% of all freight in the United States. Every container port, grocery distribution center, and Amazon fulfillment hub depends on trucks arriving on schedule. That dependency — the fact that a delayed truck is an immediate dollar loss — is exactly what ransomware operators exploit.
The math is simple: a carrier that can't dispatch for 48 hours has two options. Pay the ransom, or watch revenue evaporate. Most small and mid-size carriers have no incident response plan, no offline backups, and no SOC watching for threats. Attackers know this.
Cyble 2025 Transport & Logistics Threat Report
Ransomware syndicates launched 283 verified attacks against transport and logistics firms in 2025 — surpassing 2023 and 2024 combined (242 attacks). Four groups — CL0P, Qilin, Akira, and Play — drove 57% of incidents.
The six attack vectors targeting your fleet
- ★Dispatcher phishing — fake broker emails install a remote access tool. Attackers gain full control of your TMS and load board accounts.
- ★Ransomware deployment — malware encrypts dispatch, ELD platforms, and payroll. Ransoms range from $50K to $2M. Without backups, most pay.
- ★Cyber-enabled cargo theft — attackers hijack broker or carrier accounts on load boards, post fraudulent listings, and physically redirect high-value shipments. The FBI reported $725M in losses in 2025.
- ★Double-brokering fraud — criminals impersonate legitimate carriers, accept real loads, then re-broker them while pocketing the difference or stealing the cargo.
- ★ELD & telematics exploitation — unpatched ELD devices and GPS trackers are entry points into the carrier's corporate network.
- ★Third-party / supply chain breach — a vulnerable TMS vendor, fuel card processor, or factoring company gets compromised, and every carrier on that platform inherits the breach.
Real incidents that destroyed real companies
Knights of Old (KNP Logistics) — 158 years. One weak password. Zero trucks.
The 158-year-old carrier collapsed after a ransomware attack that began with a single compromised password. Attackers encrypted all critical data, including the backups. The company could not pay the £5–6M ransom and ceased operations — 700 employees out of work, 500 trucks parked. Source: asimily.com.
Expeditors International — three weeks dark, class action filed
Expeditors shut down most of its operating and accounting systems after a cyberattack. The outage lasted three weeks and paralyzed freight management, customs processing, and distribution. Customers including iRobot filed a class action. Source: asimily.com.
The FBI's April 30, 2026 warning
The FBI Internet Crime Complaint Center (IC3) issued a public service announcement targeted specifically at the US transportation and logistics industry. Key findings:
- ★Cyber-enabled cargo theft losses hit $725M in 2025 — a 60% jump over 2024.
- ★Confirmed cargo theft incidents grew 18%; the average value per theft grew 36% to $273,990.
- ★Attackers compromise broker and carrier accounts via phishing and spoofed emails, then post fraudulent listings on load boards.
- ★Criminals alter FMCSA carrier registration details and insurance records to delay detection.
- ★The 'Diesel Vortex' threat group ran phishing campaigns using 52 domains, active since at least September 2025.
Why small and mid-size carriers are the primary target
Large shippers like Amazon and Walmart have security teams, EDR platforms, and incident response retainers. The 120,000+ small carriers running 1–50 trucks have none of that. They use shared TMS platforms, generic email providers, and have no IT staff.
Attackers prefer these targets because (1) defenses are weaker, (2) they are deeply interconnected with brokers and shippers who are higher-value targets, and (3) operational pressure — 'we need to move loads today' — makes them more likely to pay ransoms quickly.
The 5 defense layers your company actually needs
24/7 Security Operations Center (SOC)
Average ransomware dwell time — the gap between intrusion and encryption — is 16 days. A SOC continuously monitoring your endpoints and network can detect and isolate threats before they encrypt anything. The Trucky × We Secure partnership delivers sub-12-minute response times.
Endpoint Detection & Response (EDR)
Every dispatcher laptop, TMS workstation, and office PC needs EDR software. This goes far beyond antivirus — EDR monitors behavior, not just signatures, catching novel malware before it spreads.
Email security and anti-phishing
71% of T&L breaches start with a phishing email sent to dispatch or accounting. Advanced filtering, link sandboxing, and anti-spoofing rules block the vast majority of initial-access attempts.
Immutable, offline backups
The Knights of Old case failed because the attackers also encrypted the backups. A proper backup strategy includes immutable offline copies that ransomware cannot reach — tested and recoverable in hours.
Load board and FMCSA record monitoring
Carriers need alerts when someone updates their FMCSA records or new listings appear under their MC number. Trucking-specific monitoring catches identity theft before shipments disappear.
References and sources
- ★Cyble Research & Intelligence Labs — Ransomware Hits on Logistics Double in 2025 (itln.in).
- ★Cyble — Ransomware Attacks and Supply Chain Threats in 2025 (cyble.com).
- ★Commercial Carrier Journal / Trellix — Transportation & Shipping Cybersecurity Statistics Q1 2025.
- ★FBI / IC3 — Public Service Announcement: Cyber-Enabled Cargo Theft, April 30, 2026.
- ★Burns & Wilcox — Logistics Cyberattacks Set to Double.
- ★Asimily — Largest Transportation and Logistics Cyberattacks of 2025.
- ★IBM — 2025 Cost of a Data Breach Report. Average global breach cost: $4.4M.
In three years of SOC-monitored fleets under our We Secure partnership: zero successful ransomware breaches.
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