- Recent discoveries include $300,000 worth of copper and $1 million worth of data center equipment.
- Copper demand (and prices) remain high
- Manufacturers and shippers are fighting back
Experts have warned that criminals are increasingly turning their attention to data centers as AI-related construction projects accelerate across the United States, and organized crime groups target expensive hardware and construction materials.
According Insider business informationIn a single incident, a trailer containing about $300,000 in spools of copper wire was recovered, but in a related incident just a week earlier, another trailer containing about $1 million in data center equipment was also recovered.
In this specific case, the copper shipment was stolen in Alabama after leaving Florida, but was found by the Cook County Sheriff’s Office hundreds of miles away in Illinois.
Criminals are increasingly targeting data center hardware and materials.
With hyperscalers announcing multi-million dollar and multi-million dollar announcements almost weekly at times, it means that huge amounts of valuable materials are being transported across the US, ultimately creating new opportunities for criminals.
In addition to copper cabling (the price of which remains high, as does criminal demand), criminals are also targeting components and entire hardware such as servers, GPUs, storage, and more.
But manufacturers are fighting the growing threat, often stamping materials with serial numbers and trackers or installing GPS trackers inside trailers. Selling on the secondhand market is also more challenging than theft of consumer goods, because buyers who spend millions typically want security through documentation and proof of ownership.
Separate data from CargoNet revealed that incidents of cargo theft increased by around 18% in 2025, with losses increasing by a staggering 60% and the average value of thefts increasing by 36%. Metal theft also increased by 77%.
“Criminal enterprises are becoming more selective and sophisticated, targeting extremely high-value shipments rather than relying on opportunistic theft,” added Keith Lewis, vice president of operations at Verisk CargoNet.
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