AUSTIN, Tex. – For a majority of supply chain professionals, cargo theft is a much more pressing concern than terrorism, according to the annual supply chain survey by FreightWatch International.

Over 80 percent of all respondents stated that cargo theft was a major concern for supply chain operations over the next five years, surpassing terrorism, which only 11 percent of respondents listed as a major concern.

AS well,, 74 percent of all respondents stated that cargo theft had a major or moderate effect on their supply chain operations.

While the rate of cargo theft has increased every year since FreightWatch began collecting data in 2006, specific industries have seen fluctuations in both rates of theft and average loss values.

When asked about the key drivers for change in cargo theft over the past five years, the top three responses were:

Increased value of shipments; cargo theft is a low risk and high reward crime; and economic conditions.