A security system for monitoring a shipping container being transported on a cargo transport vehicle and methods for making and using same. A mounting device removably couples a container security device (CSD) to the cargo container. Monitoring cargo inside the container and detecting vehicle intrusions and container damage, the CSD includes an anti-tamper sensor, a microcontroller, a communication device, and a plurality of accelerometers and strain gages. The microcontroller generates an alarm signal based on output data from the anti-tamper sensor and records container events. The anti-temper sensor undergoes individual and integrated sensor processing procedures; whereas, the integrated sensor processing procedure determines a container alert status. The accelerometers and strain gages define a moment of inertia of the cargo container. Communicating with a telecommunications network, a network operations center of the security system receives data from the CSD for storage and creating an archive of the container events.