Freight Broker Identity Theft: How to Check an Unexpected Load Tender
Quick Answer
An email arrives from a brokerage your company knows. It asks for a load number, a pickup appointment, or the release of freight. The logo looks right. The sender refers to a real shipment.
In this article
Before acting, confirm that the brokerage authorized the request.
Freight broker identity theft can involve someone using a real broker's name, documents, or account to gain trust. The legitimate brokerage may have no part in the request. For shippers and 3PLs, the key question is who has permission to arrange this specific movement.
Start your freight broker identity theft review with the request
Read the message as an instruction. What does it ask your team to do?
Common points that need review include adding a carrier, changing a pickup contact, supplying a release number, or sending freight to another address. A request for documents may also expose information that helps someone impersonate an approved party.
Record the requested action before checking the sender. This keeps the review focused.
If the message concerns an unfamiliar shipment, ask your own shipping or customer service team whether the load exists. Do not rely on the sender's paperwork to establish that your company authorized it.
Check the company and the person separately
Confirm the exact legal business named in your shipping records. Look for small differences between the company on the tender, the email signature, and the company your team hired.
Use FMCSA's current registration resources when checking the broker's record. The agency's Move into Motus page links to public registration searches. Its registration FAQ says Licensing and Insurance is historical-only as of May 14, 2026. An older L&I screenshot may omit later filings.
Then confirm the sender's role. A public registration can help identify a company. It does not tell you whether the person who sent an email works there or has permission to change your shipment.
Ask the broker contact already approved by your business to confirm the person's name, role, and request. Use contact information obtained independently of the suspicious message.
Read the complete email address
Expand the sender field rather than relying on the display name. Compare the address with the one already saved for the brokerage.
Look closely at the domain after the @ symbol. Added words, different endings, and small spelling changes deserve attention. Also review the reply-to address if your email system shows it.
The FBI's business email compromise guidance explains that criminals can imitate familiar addresses or gain access to real email conversations.
That means a familiar thread is not enough to approve an unusual request. Treat the content of the instruction as part of the check, even when the sender appears correct.
Do not open unexpected files or follow a new login link to settle the question. Contact your IT team if a message asks you to download software, re-enter account credentials, or bypass a browser warning.
Confirm the broker's authority over this load
Use a short callback with the known broker contact. Ask them to confirm the shipment reference and the action their team requested.
For a pickup request, confirm:
- Which brokerage office or team is managing the shipment
- Which carrier is assigned
- Whether the current pickup details are approved
- Who may authorize later changes
- Where your facility should report an unexpected driver or truck
For a new commercial relationship, complete your company's onboarding process before sharing sensitive shipment details.
Be careful with partial confirmations. Someone may confirm that a load exists while having no authority to approve a carrier change. Record precisely what the person verified.
Limit the information released during the check
A verification call should not become a way to collect more shipment details.
Give only the context needed to identify the request. Keep release codes, detailed cargo information, and other restricted shipment data within the channels and roles your company has approved.
If someone cannot establish their role, route them to the broker's verified operations contact. Avoid forwarding the entire shipment file so they can “find the problem.”
Your team should agree in advance which information customer service, warehouse staff, and after-hours staff may disclose.
Connect the approved tender to the actual pickup
Once the broker confirms the request, send the approved assignment to the facility through your established process.
CargoGuard's driver verification software lets teams review license details, selfie checks, and truck registration. Compare the submitted information with the driver and equipment assigned to that load.
Use the freight broker shipment workflow to keep available pickup and delivery records together. If the person or truck at the gate differs from the approved assignment, return to the designated decision-maker before release.
What if the real brokerage denies the request?
Pause the requested action and alert your operations lead. Preserve the message, attachments, timestamps, and any changes already made.
Tell the legitimate brokerage what you received through its verified contact channel. Keep the report factual: identify the message and the requested action without accusing an individual.
If freight has moved, activate your incident process and confirm its status through trusted contacts. If the concern involves online fraud, the FBI Internet Crime Complaint Center provides an official reporting route.
A clear approval trail helps everyone answer the same question: who authorized this load, and what did they approve?
Book a CargoGuard demo to review how shipment-level checks can support your broker and pickup controls.