How tamper & anomaly detection actually work
Cargo security is loss prevention for high-value goods anywhere — a yard, a store, a mine, a vehicle — using tamper detection, zone enforcement, anomaly detection and an incident log. It is not a customs seal. When the job is proving to customs that transit cargo never diverted, that is the accredited container e-lock, and this page links you there.
Cargo security at a glance
- What it protects
- High-value goods, sites and vehicles — anywhere
- Core job
- Loss prevention (not a customs seal)
- Detection
- Tamper · zone enforcement · anomaly
- Shipped rules
- tamper · unauthorized_zone · after_hours_movement
- Output
- Timestamped incident log
- Tamper alert latency
- —† device-dependent
- Who it's for
- Mining, warehouse, retail loss prevention
- For customs transit
- See container-tracking
Security or a customs seal? They are different jobs.
The word "tamper" appears in two Trakora modules. Choosing the right one saves you buying the wrong thing.
Cargo security — this page
Loss prevention for high-value goods anywhere: a mine pit, a bonded store, a distribution yard, a CIT vehicle. Detect tampering, enforce zones, spot anomalies, and keep an incident log you can act on internally.
use when: theft / loss preventionContainer e-lock tracking
Transit evidence for customs: seal a container with an electronic lock and prove the chain of custody from port to consignee. Use when the goal is proving the cargo never diverted, not preventing loss on your own site.
go to container e-lock →From a device to an incident you can act on
Four steps. The difference between security software and a camera is here: it does not just record, it decides that something is wrong and logs it.
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Define what "normal" is
Set the zones a tracked asset, vehicle or person may be in, the hours it may move, and the events that count as tampering. Everything else is an anomaly.
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Devices report
Seals, trackers and zone readers report position, movement and physical state. A camera shows footage; these report a signal the platform can reason about.
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The platform decides
Each report is checked against the rules: was a seal cut, did something enter a forbidden zone, did anything move after hours? A breach raises an alert.
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It becomes an incident
The alert is written to a timestamped incident log — what happened, where and when — so a supervisor acts on a case, not a wall of raw footage.
A seal or device is interfered with
rule: tamperA monitored seal or device is opened, cut or physically interfered with outside an authorised event.
An alert naming the asset and the event, written to the incident log. Here tamper means theft, not a customs record — that distinction is the disambiguation above.
Dispatch a response and keep the logged event as evidence for a claim or a disciplinary.
Something enters a zone it may not
rule: unauthorized_zoneA tracked person, asset or vehicle enters a zone it has no permission for — an explosives store, a pit, a bonded area.
An alert naming who or what entered, which zone and when.
Challenge the entry in the moment; the mine-site page covers this as the lead case.
Movement outside declared hours
rule: after_hours_movementMovement is detected outside the operating hours you declared — nothing should move after 18:00, but something did.
An alert with the time and location of the movement. It pairs with the retail after-hours scan rule — the two are cross-linked, not duplicated.
Verify against the roster and open an incident if it is unexplained.
Anomaly detection, and why the log matters
Anomaly detection is the step a camera cannot do on its own. A camera records everything and asks a human to notice the wrong thing later; anomaly detection compares each event to the pattern you defined and raises the ones that do not fit — a zone entered at 02:00, a seal cut on a leg where none should be, movement on a day the site is closed.
The incident log is where those anomalies become useful. Every raised event is written with its time, place and what triggered it, so the record is a case file, not a reel of footage. That is what an insurer, an internal investigation or a board asks for — and it is the angle a camera-only installer structurally cannot offer.
What this cannot do
What to expect
- This is not an accredited customs seal system. It prevents and records loss; it does not replace a TRA/TPA-mandated customs seal where one is legally required. For customs transit evidence, use container e-lock tracking.
- It is not a guard force and not CCTV. It detects, decides and logs; responding to an incident still needs your people on the ground.
- Tamper alert latency depends on the device and its connectivity and is not stated here as a fixed figure. —†
- Devices report over GSM, so in a coverage dead zone events buffer and backfill when signal returns, delivered with their original timestamp.
- Zone and after-hours rules need the zones and hours configured. Movement where nothing is defined is recorded, but not rule-evaluated.
Facts marked — are not published on this page: tamper alert latency depends on the device and connectivity chosen and is scoped per deployment. No figure is stated where the manifest does not define one. Device unit prices are quoted per deployment.
Frequently asked questions
What is an electronic cargo tracking system?
Broadly, it is a device plus software that watches high-value cargo for tampering and diversion. Trakora splits the job in two: cargo security for loss prevention anywhere, and the container e-lock for accredited customs-transit evidence.
How is this different from CCTV?
A camera records; this decides. Anomaly detection compares each event to your rules and raises the ones that do not fit, then logs them as incidents — a case file, not a reel of footage.
Does "tamper" mean the same as on the container page?
The rule shares a name but not a purpose. Here tamper is a theft signal for loss prevention; on the container page it is evidence for a customs chain of custody. Choose the page that matches your job.
Is it certified for customs seals?
No. Cargo security is loss prevention, not an accredited customs seal. Where a mandated customs seal is required, use container e-lock tracking, which is built for that chain of custody.
More on cargo security
Turn events into an incident log
Tell us what you are protecting and where, and we will scope a TZS quote with a VAT invoice and Swahili support.