The Rate Con Came From a Broker You've Never Met. Open It Safely.

You're the carrier when you pick up the phone

A dispatcher doesn't book for themselves. You book for the carrier. Their authority, their insurance, their bank account and their driver's next week are riding on what you say yes to.

Here's how the day goes. A load pops on the board. You call. The "broker" is friendly, fast and new to you. Two minutes later there's an email with a rate con attached. That download is the most dangerous click you'll make all day.

Shield has run in beta inside LFS for over three years and is built into LFS AOS. For the full engine, see how LFS Shield works.

---

Checking a broker you've never worked with

Before you book, Shield looks at the broker you're about to trust. How long has that web address existed? Does the email domain belong to the company on the authority record? Is the phone number the one the company publishes, or one that only exists in this email? Has their authority history changed recently?

You get a plain answer: one of four levels, with a reason you can repeat to your carrier.

Unknown shippers deserve the same caution. Here's how a fake shipper with a new website tried us.

The fake rate con download

Scammers use rate cons two ways.

As bait for money. The rate con looks real, but the load is stolen, double brokered or flat fake. Shield checks the issuer against the broker you called, compares it to the load you were offered and catches a second rate con on the same freight.

As bait for your computer. The "rate con" is a file that wants you to enable macros, run a script or install a viewer. Shield's built-in malware scan catches it before it opens, so one bad download can't hijack the inbox you use for every carrier you dispatch.

After you book

Shield keeps watching. If the pickup changes, a "new contact" asks for the carrier's packet, or the POD is requested at an address the broker never used, it flags it. A payment change on your carrier's account waits for verification.

---

One bad booking can bankrupt a carrier

The carrier trusted you with their MC. If you book a fake load, they burn fuel and a driver's day for nothing. If the paperwork lands with a scammer, somebody else collects their pay. For a one-truck carrier, that can be the truck note and the insurance payment gone.

"Your dispatcher is booking loads in your name. If they aren't protected, you aren't protected."

— Michael Thomas, Founder

Dispatch companies: protect the carriers who trust you

• Guard their authority. A carrier hands you its MC every time you book. Treat that like the trust it is.
• Check every booking. Each load gets verified before it goes out under a carrier's name.
• Show them the work. Let a carrier see how each rate con was checked. Trust is earned one safe load at a time.
• Never put a carrier at risk. No load touches a carrier's name without a check.

---

Read Shield's guide for dispatch desks and how a fake shipper got caught. Help your carriers keep compliance files clean in LFS Compliance. See the carrier page.

---

FAQ