The inside scoop on freight fraud

Jeff Hopper is the Chief Marketing Officer at DAT. In that role, he oversees the customer service department, which houses DAT’s Network Integrity Unity, a team dedicated to preventing fraud within the DAT ecosystem. Their role is crucial – they work tirelessly to prevent fraudulent actors from infiltrating our system, ensuring your business is protected.

Hopper sat down with DAT Corporate Communications Director Annabel Reaves, and their conversation covered the state of fraud. Click here to watch the entire conversation or read these three takeaways.

Fighting fraud isn’t a business decision, it’s a moral one

The industry is losing billions of dollars due to fraudulent actors. Hopper points out that while some larger shippers can absorb those losses, the real tragedy is how it affects independent owner-operators. In contrast to a large corporation, fraud targeting individuals often puts them out of business. “It could be the difference between staying in business or going out of business,” Hopper said. “Or if they can provide for their families or not…We’ve got to all come together to fight fraud.”

The most common types of fraud

Hopper outlines the following as the most common types of fraud DAT experts see:

• Shell accounts. Via many means, bad actors will create fake businesses with legitimate operating authority to double broker loads.
• Identity theft. Criminals will obtain a legitimate user’s login credentials, usually via phishing, and begin working on DAT’s network while appearing as a well-known or reputable user.

It’s not if, it’s when

Fraud and cybercrime are inevitable. You cannot prevent cyber attacks from happening, and instead, your efforts should focus on smart defenses. “That’s why having the right cybersecurity measures in place matters the most,” Hopper said.

Smart businesses can’t avoid fraud. Phishing and smishing attempts will target employees regardless. Companies should instead focus on proper defenses, including thorough training for employees.

DAT’s plan of action against fraud

At DAT, we’re taking proactive steps to protect against cyber threats via:

• Implementing stronger password criteria
• Round-the-clock third-party security monitoring and testing
• Enabling two-factor authentication
• Creating a fraud protection resource library and a live dashboard, where you can check for alerts
• Enhanced network participant vetting processes
• Maintaining a 100% response rate to reports

How everyone can fight bad actors

• Study DAT’s resources – Knowledge is power. Familiarize yourself with the latest news and updates about fraud in logistics with DAT’s library of fraud protection resources.
• Report bad actors – Have you encountered fraudulent actors in your network? Don’t let them get by – report them to us so we can ensure other users won’t encounter them and they are removed from DAT’s ecosystem. We maintain a 100% response rate to these reports. Additionally, if you become the victim of a cyber crime, immediately report it to IC3.gov.
• Don’t hesitate to ask questions – As always, DAT is here to help. If you’d like to speak to our compliance department, please call 800-547-5417 or email us at compliance@dat.com.

To see their conversation in full, click here.