{
  "id": 6599775,
  "title": "Why freight visibility needs a second signal",
  "url": "https://urgent.news/2026/09/10/why-freight-visibility-needs-a-second-signal",
  "topic": "business",
  "section": "Business",
  "published": "2026-09-10T14:00:21.000Z",
  "source": {
    "name": "FreightWaves",
    "slug": "freightwaves",
    "url": "https://www.freightwaves.com/news/why-freight-visibility-needs-a-second-signal"
  },
  "original_language": "en",
  "account": "For most of the past decade, \"visibility\" in the freight industry has primarily referred to knowing the real-time location of a truck. Carriers connected their ELDs, brokers accessed telematics feeds, and shippers plugged into these data streams. This shift eliminated significant manual work and is now considered a basic requirement. However, merely knowing where a signal indicates a truck is located does not guarantee the safety, legitimacy, or timely progress of the load. Cargo theft losses surged to an estimated $725 million in 2025, a 60% increase from the previous year, according to Verisk CargoNet's annual analysis. The fastest-growing category is strategic theft, which involves tactics such as identity fraud, double brokering, fake emails, and compromised logins used to divert or steal entire loads. A single tracking source, no matter how reliable, was never designed to verify whether the signal originated from the driver, truck, or load it claims to represent. Telematics feeds can be accurate yet attached to the wrong truck if equipment was swapped post-booking or manipulated in spoofing scenarios. A second, independent signal is essential. Descartes MacroPoint's solution, ELD+, is a new dual-source tracking capability that combines ELD and mobile app tracking within the same load-tracking session, rather than treating them as separate methods of obtaining location data. This approach employs the same layered-validation method used in cybersecurity, requiring multiple independent factors to confirm a system's trustworthiness. ELD+ functions as a risk signal, not a final verdict. When both sources align, operations teams gain greater confidence in the shipment record. When they diverge, it prompts further investigation before a discrepancy escalates into a more significant issue or claim. While telematics data has limitations, ELD+ extends beyond providing a backup GPS ping. The mobile side of ELD+ allows drivers to confirm arrival and departure milestones, capture photos and documents, and submit proof of delivery directly within the same tracking session. Telematics alone cannot generate proof of delivery images, which customers often require. Descartes MacroPoint OpsForce, the company's suite of AI agents for freight visibility, aims to address this gap by managing driver requests, follow-ups, and confirmations for missing milestones and documents, reducing the need for manual follow-up. Dan Cicerchi, General Manager of Transportation Management at Descartes, emphasized that AI innovations in their real-time visibility solution aim to enhance accuracy and responsiveness. Since its rollout, OpsForce customers have experienced up to a 30% average increase in no-touch tracking automation and substantial reductions in manual check calls. However, ELD+ does not replace other forms of verification. Comprehensive risk reduction involves carrier vetting, identity and equipment validation, in-transit monitoring, exception alerting, and clear escalation paths. These elements must work together, as no single control can catch every potential issue. As fraud tactics like double brokering and business email compromise have become more sophisticated, a layered approach has become increasingly crucial. ELD+ contributes to this stack by offering a second, independent point of comparison within the same tracking session, allowing operations teams to identify discrepancies earlier, when there is still time to question them.",
  "summary": "For most of the last decade, “visibility” in freight has meant knowing where a truck is right now. Carriers connected their ELDs and brokers and shippers plugged into telematics feeds. The industry mostly stopped relying on calling drivers to ask for a location. That shift eliminated an enormous amount of manual work, and it’s now […] The post Why freight visibility needs a second signal appeared…",
  "key_points": [],
  "editors_take": null,
  "illustration": null,
  "coverage": {
    "outlets": 1,
    "also_reported_by": []
  },
  "ai_generated": true,
  "disclaimer": "Summaries, key points and the editor’s take are written by software from other outlets’ reporting and may contain errors — always check the linked original."
}