Low-cost, low-violence tech theft risk grows

Low-cost, low-violence theft of high tech products in transit is growing risk according to patterns observed by experts speaking at a recent AXA cargo loss conference held in Hong Kong.

Some of the concerning methods used by criminals include forged personal or corporate identities and forged bills, which are supported by social engineering or a data hack to increase their plausibility or to identify the most valuable items.

DHL APAC head of security, Jessie Han, questioned whether this was the type of risk which could be “solved with money”. Other experts argued the level of risk greatly differs according to the geographical location of transit; transporting a truckload of smartphones or CSV cards across Europe requires top security, but the same shipment may not require the same level of protection being driven across China.

China’s Hon Hai, better known as Foxconn Technology Group, is the world’s biggest contract electronics maker and major Apple supplier, employs a sophisticated risk management framework; giving specific attention to the selection of their logistics partners.

One of the key components of Hon Hai’s risk management plan makes all parties responsible for losses. “By letting each operating business units bear a part of their losses, we also ensure their alignment to the group’s risk management framework,” Cinsia Hung, Hon Hoi’s head of insurance said.

Experts also discussed one solution from Singapore startup DiSa which could curtail theft during transit by making the stolen device impossible to use without being legitimately unlocked after purchase, therefore reducing the need for theft cover.