Top Cyber Threats in Logistics and How to Defend Against Them
For decades, transport and logistics operators have focused primarily on physical security, guarding cargo, facilities, and vehicles, often underestimating the digital dimension of risk. That mindset is evolving. As operations become connected, the sector has emerged as a lucrative target for a wide spectrum of threat actors: from financially motivated cybercrime groups to politically driven hacktivists and state-sponsored attackers.Despite their differing motives, the outcomes tend to converge: disruption of operations, financial losses, reputational damage, erosion of public trust, and, in severe cases, impacts on critical infrastructure and safety.
The shifting security paradigm in transport and logistics
The ENISA Threat Landscape 2025 report (covering July 2024 – June 2025) confirms that the transport sector remains one of the EU’s top three cyber targets, accounting for 7.5% of all recorded incidents. Within the sector, air transport suffered the majority of attacks, representing 58.4% of cases, followed by logistics at 20.8%. This trend reflects continuity. In the previous reporting period (June 2023 – July 2024), transport accounted for 11% of global attacks, alongside public administration (19%) and finance (9%).
Hacktivism
Hacktivist activity continues to exert disproportionate pressure on the sector. In 2025, transport ranked among the top three sectors targeted, trailing public administration at 63.1% but ahead of finance at 11.7%. This pattern mirrors 2024, when the sector consistently attracted hacktivist attention. Leading threat actors, including Noname 057, Lockbit, Black Basta, and Cyber Dragon, dominated these campaigns, with Noname 057 responsible for the largest share.
DDoS attacks were the primary method of disruption, accounting for 87.6% of transport-related hacktivist activity in 2025. Notably, NoName057(16) orchestrated 36.4% of these attacks, DarkStorm Team 15.4%, and Mysterious Team Bangladesh 6.2%. In 2024, DDoS attacks similarly drove targeted activity across sectors, with transport among the top three targets (21% of all DDoS incidents), alongside public administration (33%) and banking (12%).
Cybercrime
Cybercrime targeting the EU transport sector represented 8.4% of all recorded incidents, with ransomware comprising 83.9% of these cases and data breaches making up the remaining 16.1%. The sector’s top three ransomware strains in 2025 are Akira (12.9%), followed by INC Ransom and Cl0p, each accounting for 9.7% of incidents.
The operational impact of these attacks remains significant. In 2024, 12% of all incidents reported under the NIS Directive with major consequences originated from the transport sector.
Together, these trends highlight the sector’s vulnerability. Transport’s reliance on digital systems for logistics, scheduling, and operational coordination makes it an enduringly attractive target for both hacktivists and cybercriminals. The persistence of attacks, combined with their operational and economic impact, highlights the urgent need for continuous monitoring, proactive threat mitigation, and strategic collaboration to protect the EU’s transport infrastructure.
Below, we break down the top threats and outline concise, actionable playbooks to detect, mitigate, and respond.
