The International Union of Marine Insurance, a global association representing the marine insurance industry, and Transported Asset Protection Association EMEA, a non-profit industry association focused on reducing cargo theft and supply chain losses across Europe, the Middle East and Africa, are warning insurers and logistics firms about a sharp escalation in cargo theft and freight fraud across global supply chains.
- IUMI founded in 1874, it serves as the leading forum for dialogue, education, and policy advocacy among marine underwriters, insurers, and related stakeholders worldwide.
- TAPA EMEA’s core mission is to reduce losses of high-value goods during production, storage, and transportation by combating cargo theft and related crime.
Incidents continue to rise across Europe, the Americas, and Africa. The pattern differs by region. Latin America and parts of Africa still see violent physical attacks. Europe and North America now face a fast-growing wave of digitally driven fraud.
According to Beinsure analysts, the shift reflects where criminals see the highest return with the lowest operational risk.
Data from TAPA’s intelligence system shows nearly 160,000 cargo-related crimes recorded across 129 countries between 2022 and 2024. Estimated losses run into the billions of euros, though reporting gaps suggest the real figure runs higher.
The joint briefing describes a structural change in how cargo crime works. Theft no longer relies primarily on roadside ambushes or warehouse break-ins. Criminal activity is moving from physical infrastructure into digital channels.
Losses confirm the trend. Criminals increasingly replace hijackings with online deception, masking identities and manipulating logistics workflows to obtain cargo voluntarily rather than by force.
Regional figures underline the scale.
- In North America, cargo theft losses reached $455 mn in 2024, tied to more than 3,600 reported incidents. Average loss per event exceeded $202,000.
- In Europe, the Middle East, and Africa, TAPA EMEA logged more than 108,000 thefts across over 110 countries in the past two years. Only 5% of those incidents reported loss values, yet they still totalled more than €1 bn, roughly €1.3 mn lost every 24 hours. High-value cases above €100,000 averaged €878,525.
The preferred method has changed. Fraudulent collections now replace armed theft. Criminals set up shell companies, clone legitimate carriers, or operate with stolen credentials. Cargo moves because paperwork looks valid.
Thorsten Neumann said cargo crime continues to adapt. Physical theft still occurs, but digital deception grows faster.
Criminals hide identities, copy legitimate firms, and exploit trust-based processes built into freight operations. According to our data, digital impersonation now accounts for a growing share of unrecovered cargo losses.
Neumann warned artificial intelligence could accelerate the trend. AI already lowers the barrier to document forgery and identity masking. As tools mature, deception scales faster and losses climb.
The briefing notes AI is not yet the primary driver behind these crimes. That changes soon. Automated document creation and credential harvesting shorten timelines and expand reach.
IUMI and TAPA are calling for immediate action from shippers, logistics providers, insurers, and freight exchange platforms.
They recommend continuous vetting of carriers and drivers, strict verification of documentation and insurance credentials, adherence to recognised security standards, and closer monitoring of abnormal behaviour across booking and collection processes.
Lars Lange said freight exchange platforms sit at a pressure point. These platforms, he said, carry direct responsibility for screening participants and preventing bogus carriers from operating inside digital marketplaces where trust still does too much of the work.
