Criminal rings hijack data-center shipments using hacked GPS and broker accounts

Since June, thieves have pilfered more than $100 million worth of data-center freight by exploiting digital vulnerabilities in broker websites. They first hack broker accounts, post fictitious shipments and lure legitimate carriers with malicious links that install control software. The criminals then bid on authentic loads, sometimes employing real drivers unaware of the fraud or using counterfeit driver’s licenses to enlist accomplices.

Targeted items include servers, fiber-optic cables, memory chips, copper wire spools, and bitcoin-mining machines, with some stolen trailers valued at $1 million in custom power solutions. Law-enforcement agencies, such as the Cook County Sheriff’s Office, have recovered portions of the cargo, but in the largest incidents the equipment remains missing and off-duty police escorts were deliberately run down.