Freight fraud is rampant in the transportation industry, with email phishing being a primary line of attack. The fraud situation has become so severe and costly that the U.S. House of Representatives has held hearings on the “surge of malicious actors engaging in illegal activity.”
Earlier this year, Highway CEO Jordan Graft spoke on the problem, emphasizing the $100 million annual cost to the industry and the need for a multilayered solution — including a powerful tool to eliminate fraud in the inbox.
Recognizing the inbox as the first line of defense, Highway has developed innovative solutions to strengthen brokers' defenses right where they are most vulnerable.
Continue reading to learn more about how bad actors target freight broker inboxes and how Highway is helping brokers secure their networks against email phishing. Interested in learning more about Highway’s tools for combating fraud in the inbox? Schedule a demo now.
Email Phishing: How Bad Actors Target Freight Brokers
Bad actors often target carrier sales representatives by sending emails from addresses that closely resemble those of legitimate carriers. For example, a lowercase “l” in an email extension might be replaced with a capital “I,” a subtle difference that's easy to miss in the rush of daily tasks.
How do these bad actors discover the loads in the first place? They may spot loads posted on public load boards or have knowledge of specific lanes a brokerage frequently runs. Their goal is to deceive the sales rep into sending them the rate confirmation, allowing them to steal the load.
Highway’s new feature addresses this threat by extending its robust identity verification and fraud prevention capabilities directly into brokers' inboxes.
How Highway Fights Email Phishing and Inbox Fraud
The Highway platform integrates seamlessly with popular email and customer service platforms to offer brokers real-time protection right where they need it most — in their inboxes. This feature dynamically analyzes emails against Highway’s comprehensive database, enabling brokers to catch fraud attempts as they happen.
Here’s how it works:
- Verification: The plugin matches the email address you're communicating with to Highway’s identity engine, ensuring the sender is a verified representative of the carrier.
- Risk Assessment: The plugin provides one of three alerts:some text
- Red: Mismatch between the email domain and the carrier’s registered domain (like in the example where someone’s email phishing with a capital I in place of a lowercase L). Do not proceed.
- Yellow: The sender is emailing on behalf of a carrier, but the relationship hasn’t been verified (like when a third-party dispatch service emails about a load on behalf of a carrier). Proceed with caution.
- Green: An exact match with verified identity. Proceed with confidence.
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This background verification happens instantly, allowing sales reps to maintain their workflow while being protected against fraud.
Highway for Email: Plugins and Integrations
Highway’s Outlook Plugin
Protect your Outlook inbox from email phishing and fraud with a plugin that’s quick to deploy and easy to use.
Highway’s Gmail Plugin
Brokers using Google Workspace can secure their networks with Highway’s Gmail plugin, the latest addition to our suite of anti-phishing tools.
Highway’s Front Integration
Brokers using Front, a leading platform for customer service and communication, can leverage the Highway integration to identify phishing attempts and eliminate fraud in the inbox. Watch our webinar with Front to learn more about this integration.
Real Results: What Users Are Saying
Brokers already using Highway’s email protection tools have seen significant benefits:
- “Flagging fraudulent emails is a game-changer,” said one user. “It takes away the decision-making for people who need to focus on making money and building relationships.”
- “We don’t have a huge team to monitor everything,” noted another. “This acts as an extra layer of security and compliance that really helps us.”
Highway’s tools have delivered a proven 97% reduction in fraud across all Highway brokerages by expanding fraud protection to the very first point of friction between bad actors and your carrier sales team.
Get Started: Protect Your Inbox With Highway
Ready to see how Highway can help secure your network against email phishing and fraud? Schedule a demo today and take the first step toward a safer, more secure brokerage.
