A Carrier Reports Identity Theft: What Brokers Should Do Next
Quick Answer
A carrier calls your brokerage with a troubling message: “We did not book that load. Someone is using our name.”
In this article
Your team needs to act, but the first explanation may be incomplete. The caller could be the real carrier, an employee who lacks dispatch information, or another person trying to redirect the investigation.
A strong carrier identity theft response starts with two goals: establish what is happening and protect affected shipments. The steps below are practical recommendations for organizing that work. Use your incident plan and involve qualified security, legal, insurance, and law-enforcement contacts when appropriate.
Confirm the report through an established channel
Record the caller's name, role, company, callback number, and the load they are discussing. Then contact the carrier through a channel your team established independently of the disputed booking.
Ask which facts the carrier disputes. Did it reject the load entirely? Does it recognize the dispatcher but not the driver? Was its email account or load-board access reportedly compromised? Keep statements separate from facts your team has confirmed.
Do not label the driver or another carrier a thief based only on the first call. FMCSA's fraud guidance notes that a carrier involved with an affected load may also be a victim. Careful coordination can help everyone understand where the freight is.
Assign a carrier identity theft response owner
Assign an incident lead. That person should maintain the working timeline, confirm who is handling each task, and approve operational updates under your company's procedures.
Use one shared incident record with clear access limits. Link related load records rather than copying sensitive documents into several group chats.
List immediate assignments: customer contact, facility contact, carrier coordination, evidence collection, and technical review. One person may hold several roles in a small team. The important point is that each job has an owner.
Find every shipment that could be affected
Search your own records for bookings tied to the disputed contact details, dispatcher, email address, or relevant account. Include loads awaiting pickup, in transit, and recently delivered.
Use a simple status for each load:
- Awaiting verification before release
- Released, with location and custody being checked
- Delivery reported, with receiving confirmation pending
- Reviewed and cleared, with the reason recorded
A matching company name alone is not a reason to cancel every load with that carrier. Look for the specific contacts and booking circumstances linked to the report. Expand the review when new evidence supports it.
Separate the response by shipment stage
For loads still at origin, contact the pickup facility through its established channel. Confirm whether loading or release has occurred. Apply the agreed hold procedure while the assignment is checked. Give the facility a named contact for resolution.
For loads already moving, work with the carrier, customer, and incident lead to establish the current location, driver, equipment, and intended destination. Compare available tracking information with direct operational updates. If information conflicts, preserve both accounts and investigate.
Do not direct staff to chase a truck, confront a driver, or recover freight themselves. Safety decisions and suspected theft may require immediate law-enforcement involvement.
For reported deliveries, confirm receipt with the intended customer or receiver. Ask whether the expected goods arrived and whether the receiving record matches the shipment. A document uploaded to a load does not by itself settle a disputed delivery.
Preserve the original evidence
Keep original messages, attachments, tender records, document versions, call notes, and relevant shipment activity. Record times with the time zone. Note which details came from a witness and which came from your own systems.
Ask your technical team to preserve relevant account and access records using its incident process. Do not wipe devices or delete suspicious messages simply to make the workspace look clean.
CargoGuard supports review of shipment tracking, pickup photos, and documents. Retain relevant records under your organization's access and retention rules. Keep driver identity material out of broad email distributions.
Report with confirmed facts and clear uncertainties
If cargo theft is suspected, use the appropriate law-enforcement channels without waiting for every detail to be resolved. The FBI's cargo-theft advisory directs victims to local police and IC3 or a local FBI field office.
Notify the customer and other required parties under your incident procedures and applicable agreements. State what is known, what remains uncertain, and who owns the next update. Avoid public accusations while identity and custody are still under review.
Set a clear path back to normal operations
Before clearing a load, document the actual hauling company, authorized driver, approved destination, and basis for the decision. Use a second reviewer for unresolved or high-risk exceptions under your policy.
Driver verification can support the person-and-vehicle review. The carrier's authorization still needs a separate confirmation.
After the incident, fix the specific gaps the review exposed. Book a CargoGuard demo to discuss how shipment records can support your response workflow.