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How to Stay Safe at Every Step of the Shipping Process 

Together, we can make the logistics industry safer

With fraud on the rise in our industry, shipping vehicles safely has never been more important. To help our shippers meet this challenging moment, we’ve taken major steps to make secure and confident shipping easier. But everyone has a role to play – while we’ve strengthened our tools and processes, it’s important that you also take steps to protect yourself.  

So be sure to read our best practices for staying safe and secure from listing to delivery, so you can use Central Dispatch with maximum confidence and security.

Secure Your Account

Sharing your sign-in details with others, even people who work for you, can expose you to fraud and unauthorized access. So, we highly recommend setting up User Management as soon as you activate your account with us.

This gives contractors, employees, or people outside your organization their own Central Dispatch login credentials and minimizes the risks of identity theft when sharing your own account credentials. You can also set guardrails on what business information they can view, helping you avoid potential account security risks.

Plus, with reinforced multi-factor authentication, every Central Dispatch account has an extra layer of protection from unauthorized access. Your mobile phone number is the preferred verification method, and the most secure.

Be sure to be cautious about who you add as a user, and always vet any third party companies or contractors before giving them an account under User Management.

Verify Your Carrier Before Dispatching 

Many cases of fraud can be avoided with a few important security checks before dispatching, and all of them can be done easily from the carrier’s Central Dispatch profile.  

Check their FMCSA details with our FMCSA checklist, which displays a carrier’s current USDOT#, MC# (if applicable), and more. Authorized and reputable carriers will have this information up-to-date.  

You can also view any available insurance documents they’ve uploaded to Central Dispatch. Consider contacting the provider and asking to be added as a certificate holder (COI), and conducting your own validation of their insurance outside the Central Dispatch platform.

Finally, view the carrier’s Transactional Ratings. There you’ll find detailed reviews for transactions they’ve completed on Central Dispatch, and get a clear idea of their behavior and reliability. If any suspicious business practices are called out in ratings, we highly recommend not partnering with them.

Secure Communications During Transit

It’s best to keep as much communication as possible within our platform. Dispatching and communicating through private phone calls, emails, and texts exposes you to fraud. 

So, be sure to always dispatch vehicles using our fully electronic dispatch system. Assigning vehicles to carriers greatly reduces the risk of falling victim to fake texts and phone calls. Additionally, you may encourage your carrier partner to assign each load to a specific driver. This lets you verify the driver’s identity at pickup and gives you better visibility into your shipments. 

You can also encourage your carriers to use the Central Dispatch carrier mobile app and enable real-time tracking. This allows for maximum visibility and transparency into shipment location and status.

Get Documentation at Pickup

Before a carrier releases a vehicle to you, it’s important to confirm the delivery truck has an MC number that matches the dispatch sheet, and check their driver’s license against the assigned driver on the dispatch sheet (if assigned). 

After the delivery is complete, always rate and review your carrier partner honestly. It’s a great way for the Central Dispatch community to help each other avoid bad actors, reward honest carriers who do good work, and create a more transparent marketplace for everyone. You can also choose to publish your review later at a later date, so you can more confidently and honestly rate your partners.  

In the Event of Fraud

If you do fall victim to fraud on our platform, it’s critical to immediately contact the authorities and file a police report in the jurisdiction of the incident. Provide any information you can to local law enforcement, and also report the incident to the USDOT’s Inspector General, file a complaint with the FMCSA National Consumer Complaint Database, or contact the Federal Trade Commission.

We also encourage you to report the incident to our new Marketplace Integrity Team. These are dedicated transportation experts who are here to take feedback from our customers and address security issues.

Steps We’re Taking To Help You Ship Safely 

Central Dispatch is making significant strides in addressing this challenge in our industry, and meaningfully reducing the level of fraud on our platform.  

We are constantly evolving our vetting process alongside the changing market landscape to ensure only legitimate companies gain access to our marketplace, and shippers can more confidently find partners. 

We’ve also formed the Marketplace Integrity Team that is dedicated to combating fraud and helping you stay secure. This team collaborates directly with Cox Security and other enterprise teams to investigate issues, deactivate fraudulent accounts, and proactively protect our customers. In 2025 alone, we have deactivated over 550 accounts due to suspicious activity, and will continue to take action where needed.

Recently, we’ve begun working with FMCSA and other industry leaders to lobby Congress, raise awareness, and push for stronger protections for automotive fraud at the highest level. 

We all play a part in building a safer, more secure marketplace for shipping vehicles. Let’s keep working together to protect our industry from fraud and ensure Central Dispatch remains a trusted platform for everyone.

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