A Chronological breakdown of how a cyber gang targeted US & European logistics firms

Global supply chains don’t collapse overnight. They are quietly infiltrated.

What began as routine email traffic inside freight and logistics companies across the United States and Europe gradually unfolded into one of the most organized phishing campaigns the sector has seen in recent months. This is a chronological reconstruction of how the attack developed — and what it reveals about the evolving cyber risks facing the logistics industry.

Phase 1: The setup (early September 2025)

In early September, cybersecurity analysts began noticing suspicious domain registrations that closely mimicked legitimate freight and brokerage platforms.

The attackers didn’t randomly select targets. They built infrastructure first.

• Over 50 look-alike domains were created.

• Many used Cyrillic homoglyph characters to visually imitate real logistics platforms.

• The domains were carefully structured to evade automated detection systems.

At this stage, there were no public disruptions — just silent preparation.

Phase 2: Target identification (mid-September 2025)

The attackers — later attributed to a financially motivated group dubbed Diesel Vortex — began compiling industry-specific contact lists.

Unlike mass phishing campaigns, this one was highly targeted:

• Freight brokers

• Dispatch managers

• Trucking coordinators

• Logistics operations staff

The focus was clear: gain access to platforms where freight bookings, payments, and carrier assignments are processed daily.

Phase 3: The phishing emails begin (late September 2025)

By the end of September, employees across US and European logistics companies began receiving emails appearing to come from legitimate freight platforms.

The emails:

• Contained urgent subject lines about load confirmations or account issues

• Directed users to fake login portals

• Closely replicated authentic platform branding

To the average operations employee handling dozens of shipments per day, the emails appeared routine.

When users entered credentials, they unknowingly handed them directly to the attackers.

Phase 4: Credential harvesting at scale (October–November 2025)

Within weeks, the campaign escalated.

Security researchers later revealed that over 1,600 unique login credentials had been captured.

This wasn’t random spam success — it was systematic harvesting.

Behind the scenes, Diesel Vortex operated with surprising structure:

• Dedicated phishing infrastructure managers

• Developers maintaining fake portals

• Personnel collecting and verifying stolen credentials

• Evidence suggesting even call-centre style coordination

This resembled an organized cybercrime enterprise — not a loose hacker collective.

Phase 5: Potential exploitation window

Once inside freight platforms, attackers could potentially:

• Hijack brokerage accounts

• Reassign cargo pickups

• Conduct double-brokering fraud

• Redirect payments

• Manipulate shipment details

In logistics, digital access often translates into physical consequences.

A compromised login can mean a truck arriving at the wrong warehouse — or cargo disappearing entirely.

Even without immediate theft, unauthorized access creates operational instability, mistrust, and financial exposure.

Phase 6: Detection and exposure

Cybersecurity firms eventually traced the infrastructure, identifying the pattern of fraudulent domains and credential harvesting activity.

The campaign was publicly exposed, but not before substantial data had already been collected.

The freight industry was forced to confront a difficult reality:

Logistics platforms are now high-value cyber targets.