In many ways, international trade is the central practice that has allowed modern societies to flourish. Just as our ancestors were able to expand, develop new skills and import knowledge through local trade, international trade in the modern age has enabled current communities to grow increasingly advanced, complex and diverse.
However, those working in global business know that the value held in international trade can be a beacon to malicious actors. Whether to unlock the value of goods themselves or to disrupt important supply chains, vessels, vehicles and facilities involved in international trade can be uniquely vulnerable to opportunistic and organized crime.
Addressing and preventing these threats is a critical priority for warehouse and logistics managers. To help combat increasingly complex and sophisticated threats, below we provide a practical checklist for proactively protecting internationally traded goods.
Security challenges in international trade warehousing
Threats against international trade operations have increased significantly in recent years.
In 2025 alone, North American cargo theft losses surged by
Before identifying specific technologies and measures that warehouse operators should work to implement in their facilities, we should briefly cover the threat landscape facing international warehousing in 2026.
Sophisticated cargo theft
Cargo theft has long been a major source of loss for businesses engaged in international trade, but threats have escalated significantly in recent years. Estimated North American cargo theft losses surged to $725 million in 2025, with the threat often described as one of the greatest challenges facing logistics, transport and warehousing professionals.
While vehicles in transit are the main target of cargo theft, organized criminals are increasingly viewing warehouses and distribution centers as primary targets. With aid from advanced technologies, criminals are convincingly cloning credentials, falsifying transport documents and fraudulently posing as carriers to steal goods while bypassing security systems.
Exploitable access controls
Effectively managing access at modern warehouses can be uniquely challenging as, unlike an office or retail store, internal personnel and third parties require varying degrees of access to low and high-risk areas on a regular basis.
Criminals will frequently attempt to exploit any weaknesses in access controls to get to secure areas and valuable goods. Whether through tailgating, cloned credentials, oversights in visitor management or stolen keys, weak access security can leave valuable goods exposed.
Cybersecurity vulnerabilities
Cybersecurity threats are a growing concern for businesses engaged in international trade. As warehouse operators adopt increasingly sophisticated technologies to streamline day-to-day operations, with the warehouse management system market expected to reach a value of $7.69 billion by 2030, criminals are increasingly targeting digital systems to steal data and expose valuable goods.
As the digital attack surface grows, warehouses become more vulnerable to attacks that can take mission critical infrastructure offline and expose sensitive assets.
To make matters worse, attackers are increasingly leveraging AI to automate and accelerate the scale at which attacks are waged, with
4-Stage checklist for protecting internationally traded goods
To protect internationally traded goods against increasingly sophisticated threats, growing numbers of warehouse and logistics managers are exploring practical ways to strengthen physical and cybersecurity protections.
To reliably address and preempt modern threats, it’s imperative that leaders take a structured, informed and agile approach to security improvements. To aid decision makers in this process, below we provide a practical checklist for protecting internationally traded goods covering four key areas where risks and vulnerabilities consistently emerge.
1. Perimeter security
For warehouse operators, impactful physical security improvements begin with efforts to strengthen perimeter protections. The fewer the potential access points to a facility and the greater visibility internal teams have over such points, the more likely that suspicious events will be identified promptly and attackers will be apprehended long before goods are exposed.
An effective perimeter security checklist for international warehouses will consider:
- Parking: Parking lots should be segregated to account for employees, couriers and visitors. Access to each of these parking lots should be restricted using vehicle access control systems and manned guard stations to ensure all access events are recorded.
- Fencing: The entire perimeter of the main facility must be contained within continuous fencing that’s regularly patrolled and inspected by security personnel. Fencing should be a minimum of 8 feet tall and free from gaps that could be exploited by attackers.
- Buffer zones: A continuous buffer zone free from vegetation and obstructions should be maintained around perimeter fencing to eliminate blind spots that attackers could use to circumvent surveillance; this buffer zone should measure around 3 feet in width.
- Surveillance: All vehicle access points and the entire perimeter should be covered by continuously monitored and active CCTV systems; consider cameras with AI analytics features that can autonomously detect anomalous events and warn operators via SMS.
- Lighting: Lighting systems should be installed at all entry points and around the entire perimeter to eliminate blind spots and ensure cameras can capture clear footage 24/7.
2. Interior access control
Beyond perimeter protections, continuously monitored access control systems must be deployed to prevent malicious actors from gaining access to valuable goods.
Facility managers should consider using door access control systems to automatically restrict entry to sensitive areas behind personalized, traceable credentials. Employees can be issued physical tokens like key cards or fobs that grant access only to areas relevant to their roles; couriers and guests can be sent time-based mobile credentials prior to their visit that grant restricted access to low risk areas like perimeters and dispatch zones.
For high–risk areas like loading docks, consolidation areas and storage zones for high-value goods, access should be secured behind Multi-Factor Authentication (MFA). MFA requires authorized persons to present multiple forms of credentials to gain access to a specific area, helping to minimize the risk of lost or stolen credentials exposing valuable assets.
When developing access systems, consider the benefits of using a range of credential types to meet different needs:
|
Credential type |
Issued to |
Use case |
|
Mobile credential |
Freight carriers, couriers, contractors, visitors. |
Grant time-based access to low risk areas via digital passes sent to users’ smart devices. |
|
Key card / key fob |
Packers, pickers, sorters, doc workers. |
Grant restricted access to areas related to users’ roles; review access events at any time via a digital interface. |
|
Biometrics |
Warehouse managers, operations managers, security leaders. |
Grant secure access to high risk areas by using difficult to fabricate biometric information (iris scan, fingerprint etc.) as access credentials. |
3. Loading and conveyance security
Threats related to carrier fraud and security lapses when loading traded goods are major risks in warehouse security management. Without site-specific, well-structured protections in place, attackers can gain unauthorized access to loading bays or target unsecured vehicles in transit.
In addition to perimeter protections, dedicated security measures should be deployed to check all incoming vehicles are authorized and all loaded goods are secured. These measures must cover key practices like driver vetting, vehicle inspections and goods tracking.
Points to address in an effective warehouse security checklist include:
- Driver vetting: Driver credentials must be scanned and checked against the Bill of Lading and internal access records to confirm that incoming vehicles are authorized.
- Pre-load inspections: The interior and exterior of all trucks, trailers and containers must be thoroughly inspected for hidden compartments before any goods are loaded.
- Seal verification: Cargo must be sealed in accordance with the View, Verify, Tug and Twist (VVTT) protocol to ensure goods are secured and to protect against tampering.
- Goods tracking: GPS devices should be affixed to valuable goods prior to loading to provide operations managers real-time visibility into their location during transit.
- Dock security management: Loading areas must be covered by security cameras and tamper-proof locks must be used to secure dock doors before and after loading.
4. Cybersecurity measures
Finally, warehouse managers must ensure all important digital systems are secured against cyber threats. As digital technologies like warehouse management, surveillance and access control systems become more central to managing daily operations, the value in intercepting sensitive data grows in the eyes of criminals.
To help prevent malicious actors from remotely disabling mission critical systems and stealing data that could be used to breach physical security systems, it’s imperative that operations and security managers apply cybersecurity protections to all active systems.
Key tools and practices to focus on include:
- Access control: Physical access to server rooms must be secured behind traceable credentials and access to digital systems must be secured behind MFA protections.
- Network segmentation: Critical operational and security systems must be isolated from each other to minimize the risk of a breach in one system spreading to all others.
- Encryption: All communications between digital systems must be encrypted at rest and in transit to help prevent malicious actors from intercepting sensitive data remotely.
- Endpoint security: Endpoint detection and response solutions must be integrated into all digital systems to help security personnel identify and address suspicious activities.
- Operational practices: Leaders must ensure that all software is regularly updated, all passwords are regularly changed and unnecessary credentials are routinely deleted.
Maintaining a secure warehouse
To maintain a secure warehouse and protect internationally traded goods, modern facility operators must prioritize continuous security management. By developing a checklist that covers perimeter, access, conveyance and cybersecurity protections as discussed above, leaders can proactively address sophisticated threats and keep facilities secure.
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