Holiday weekend brings increased risk of cargo theft

Logistics organizations could see a high risk of organized cargo theft over this Independence Day holiday since July 4th falls on a Tuesday, leaving many shipments unattended for extended periods of time over the extra-long weekend, a security group warns.

Holiday breaks are traditionally a notorious period for inventory theft, but extending the weekend by a day will result in longer stage times and lower security staffing, the Beverly, Mass.-based supply chain visibility provider Sensitech Inc. said in a release.

To guard against theft, security professionals with manufacturers and logistics-related organizations can take steps to reinforce their defenses, according to Sensitech, which is a division of United Technologies Corp. Sensitech gave these tips for mitigating the risk of theft and facilitating successful recovery of stolen products:

• Ensuring security protocols are up to date and in line with industry best practices for both in-transit and warehouse operations
• Confirming in advance that the cargo receiver's hours of operation are consistent with scheduled delivery times
• Using covert global positioning system (GPS) tracking and active monitoring of high-value shipments

The cost of cargo theft can run high. They reached $365,453 for the average loss value for reported thefts over the July 4th weekends in 2015 and 2016, according to Sensitech's SensiGuard Supply Chain Intelligence Center (SCIC). Examples of notable thefts in recent years include a 2015 theft in Washington state of cell phones valued at $5.7 million and 2014 thefts of $451,000 worth of cell phones in Florida, a truckload of meat in Texas valued at $200,000, and a truckload of toys and games in California valued at $240,000.