According to FreightWaves, Cox Automotive's auto transportation marketplace Central Dispatch is extending biometric identity verification to the physical moment a carrier takes possession of a vehicle, through a new feature called Secure Vehicle Transfer. The platform listed more than 20 million vehicles last year, making it the largest auto transportation marketplace in the country.
Closing the manual gap in vehicle release
FreightWaves reported that the vehicle release process has continued to rely on paper documents, phone calls, and inconsistent provider-specific procedures, leaving a gap that fraudsters have identified and targeted. The new system targets what the company describes as a persistently manual and vulnerable stage of the auto logistics chain.
How Secure Vehicle Transfer works
Under the new system, according to FreightWaves, a shipper — whether a dealer, broker, or auction — authorizes a specific carrier to pick up a vehicle. The carrier receives a digital credential inside the same mobile app already used for vehicle inspections and electronic bills of lading. The credential is non-transferable, cannot be screenshotted or forwarded, and is revocable if the shipper reassigns the load. It is geofenced, meaning it becomes accessible only when the carrier is within a defined radius of the pickup location, at which point the releasing location scans it to confirm authorization. The entire pickup verification process is designed to take approximately 90 seconds.
| Step | Legacy process | Secure Vehicle Transfer |
|---|---|---|
| Carrier authorization | Paper-based, phone calls | Digital credential in mobile app |
| Credential security | Not applicable | Non-transferable; no screenshot/forward |
| Activation location | Not geofenced | Geofenced to pickup radius |
| Verification | Inconsistent procedures | Scan by releasing location; ~90 seconds |
Two-phase security initiative
Secure Vehicle Transfer is the second phase of a broader security initiative, FreightWaves reported. The first phase, biometric identity verification for platform access, was already rolled out this year. Central Dispatch has also added a carrier scorecard that surfaces key information about a carrier before a shipper engages with them, and a carrier mobile app with mandatory real-time tracking that cannot be disabled from pickup through delivery.
Market context
FreightWaves reported that platform volumes are at an all-time high, driven in part by dealers and commercial shippers expanding the geographic range from which they source and sell vehicles. Carrier-side pressures — rising insurance costs, fuel prices, and additional regulation — remain a challenge, but new carriers continue to enter the marketplace. Central Dispatch also offers an AI-driven pricing tool, launched roughly a year ago, that returns a predicted price, a price range, and an estimated dispatch time for any given move based on origin, destination, and vehicle specifics.
Executive outlook
Lainey Sibble, AVP at Cox Automotive, said in the FreightWaves report: "This is really about establishing a new standard for vehicle release that hasn’t existed previously. The technology is great. I love the technology. But that is not what’s going to make it successful alone. It’s going to hinge on everyone doing their part and that behavior change so that we make sure the vehicle ends up in the right hands."
Sibble also said: "We’re committed to leading the way on this. Our ask is really just for partnership across the board so that together we can ensure that ongoing safe and secure transportation of vehicles."
FreightWaves noted that no single technology will solve vehicle theft in transit, pointing to the need for industry-wide behavior change alongside the new tools. Central Dispatch's Secure Vehicle Transfer is being deployed to establish a new standard for vehicle release while maintaining an efficient process for carriers and shippers.
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