A recent Overdrive article about how to avoid identity theft hit close to home and we felt the need to share. We run and administer over 10 Facebook groups for Hotshot trucking and everyday we are under a constant barrage of scammers, frauds, and fake profiles. The clever ways they try to steal and phish for your personal information often seems legitimate.
Sometimes they are just trying to get you to click on a group chat or bitcoin link, offer jobs and services so they can hack your Facebook account. They will post advertisements that they need a driver and are offering great pay, offer a new truck and trailer, non-cdl or cdl, etc.
Lately, we have seen an increase and trend in the trucking industry… fake loads, Dispatchers asking for personal information such as DOB, SSN, and COI (certificate of insurance). Well that seems harmless enough. Wrong. Before you provide your COI, you need to be sure that you are dealing with a reputable source, that the broker has a mc # and a decent credit rating. We have seen cases lately where the load was posted under someone else’s mc number. Also, never pay a fee up front for an application fee. This is another scam we see often.
We have seen such an increase in the number of these scams that we have quit accepting their posts on our platform until we can figure out how to combat it. It is unfortunate because there are a lot of great dispatchers and fleets recruiting drivers.
How we are trying to avoid identity theft
In an attempt to vet dispatchers and drivers, we have been developing a program on our Hotshot Trucking Resources website to screen qualified dispatchers and fleets. We are connecting drivers with dispatch services that have provided all the information you need so you know that they are qualified. We can then vouch for them and they will be a part of our business spotlight and dispatcher directory. If you are a dispatcher, then you should sign up for our program.
Are you looking for a reputable Hotshot Trucking owner operator to cover a load for you or to hire on to contract out as a direct customer? We are also compiling a list of Drivers with all their stats, equipment, location and contact details. This service is free and all you need to do is register with our directory. We have a great relationship with many of the best in the business so please, get with our program.
If you are not registered with our Resource website, we urge you to sign up. We are constantly building and adding features. We are promoting the industry, the businesses that make it work, and the owner operators that make it what it is today.
