DAT Blames 'External Forces' for Intermittent Service Outages

Since March 11, truck drivers and brokers who rely on the spot market to post or find freight have been documenting on social media their technical issues with using DAT's platform. Those include issues logging into DAT One, DAT iQ, its benchmarking tool, as well as its other products.

In a statement to FreightWaves Wednesday, a DAT spokesperson said its "engineering organization has been working around the clock since the first disruption to investigate and restore services" and has "successfully safeguarded all customer information."

The company also posted a statement Tuesday on X, formerly Twitter, about ongoing issues with accessing DAT's products.

"We know the important role that DAT plays in the freight economy and are continually working to improve the reliability of our networks and defend against outside threats" DAT said in the statement.

While some frustrated customers said they signed up or planned to sign up with one of DAT's competitors, the industry has had its share of freight fraud and security breaches.

Idaho-based Truckstop.com launched its weekly series, Fraud Prevention Friday, to fight fraud in the industry in May 2023. The freight-matching platform experienced a malware attack in December 2019.

Depending on the type of freight they haul, some truckers are choosing to wait out the service disruptions and stay with DAT.

"I have been loyal to DAT for 10 years but I'm concerned every day that I wake up that I won't be able to log in and access the system" one truck driver, who did not want to be named, told FreightWaves. "I run my business from the cab of my truck so this outage — or whatever it is — is costing me money and time, which I don't have, if I have to scramble to find a spot load."

DAT ramps up investment in fraud, security

Over the past year, DAT has been focusing on fraud prevention and cybersecurity since the company's alleged security breach in February 2023.

In January, DAT announced it had hired Jeff Clementz as its chief product officer and Erika Voss as vice president of information security to address product development and fight fraud. Clementz formerly served as president and CEO at Shift Technologies SFTGQ, an e-commerce platform that specializes in buying and selling used vehicles. Voss previously worked as vice president of security and engineering at Capital One.

DAT is urging customers to call their account managers or DAT's customer support team at 800-551-8847 with any issues. The company also posts the latest outage information at status.dat.com.

One owner-operator said he is using both DAT and Truckstop platforms to ensure he has access to spot market freight to run his business.

"It's costing me more money to have access to both load boards, but it's a price I'm willing to pay because I like things about both companies to find freight and keep the wheels turning" the driver told FreightWaves.

This is a developing story.

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