Dr. Seppo Virtanen is an Associate Professor in Cyber Security Engineering and Vice Head of Department of Computing, the University of Turku, Finland. At 5G Hack The Mall 2022, he presented a talk on Cybersecurity and 5G.
In the talk he covered the following topics:
Cybersecurity and Information Security
The CIA (Confidentiality, Integrity and Availability) Model
Achieving the goals of the CIA model
Intrusion and Detection
Intrusion detection, mitigation and aftercare
Smart Environments
Abstraction levels
Cybersecurity in smart environments
Cyber security concerns in smart environments
Security concerns in Smart Personal Spaces
Security concerns in Smart Rooms and Buildings
Security concerns of a participant in a smart environment
Cyber Security Concerns in Smart Environments
Cyber Security in the 5G context
Drivers for 5G security
Securing 5G
This video embedded below is a nice introduction to cybersecurity and how it overlaps with 5G:
People involved with mobile technology know the challenges with uplink for any generation of mobile network. With increasing data rates in 4G and 5G, the issue has become important as most of the speeds are focused on download but upload speeds are quite poor.
Speedtests are still the 5G killer app (#5GKillerApp) right now. Fantastic speeds from Verizon 5G Ultra Wideband (UWB) #5GBuiltRight. Upload speeds 250+ Mbps but notice how to hold the phone right to get these speeds 🤫https://t.co/DS18IOw8AW
People who follow us across our channels know of many of the presentations we share across them from various sources, not just ours. One such presentation by Peter Schmidt looked at the uplink in details. In fact we recommend following him on Twitter if you are interested in technical details and infrastructure.
The lecture highlights the influences on the mysterious part of mobile communications - sources of interference in the uplink and their impact on mobile communication as well as practices for detecting sources of RF interference.
The field strength bar graph of a smartphone (the downlink reception field strength) is only half of the truth when assessing a mobile network coverage. The other half is the uplink, which is largely invisible but highly sensitive to interference, the direction from the end device to the base stations. In this lecture, sources of uplink interference, their effects and measurement and analysis options will be explained.
Cellular network uplink is essential for mobile communication, but nobody can really see it. The uplink can be disrupted by jammers, repeaters, and many other RF sources. When it is jammed, mobile communication is limited. I will show what types of interference sources can disrupt the uplink and what impact this has on cellular usage and how interference hunting can be done.
First I explain the necessary level symmetry of the downlink (from the mobile radio base station - eNodeB to the end device) and the uplink (from the end device back to the eNodeB). Since the transmission power of the end device and eNodeB are very different, I explain the technical background to achieving symmetry. In the following I will explain the problems and possibilities when measuring uplink signals on the eNodeB, it is difficult to look inside the receiver. In comparison, the downlink is very easy to measure, you can see the bars on your smartphone or you can use apps that provide detailed field strength information etc. However, the uplink remains largely invisible. However, if this is disturbed on the eNodeB, the field strength bars on the end device say nothing. I will present a way of observing which some end devices bring on board or can be read out of the chipset with APPs. The form in which the uplink can be disrupted, the effects on communication and the search for uplink sources of disruption will complete the presentation. I will also address the problem of 'passive intermodulation' (PIM), a (not) new source of interference in base station antenna systems, its assessment, measurement and avoidance.
The slides are available here. The original lecture was in German, a dubbed video is embedded below:
If you know of some other fantastic resources that we can share with our audience, please feel free to add them in the comments.
We have looked at what we mean by cloud-native in an earlier post here. Recently we also looked at edge-native infrastructure here. While we have been debating between cloud and edge for a while, in a new presentation (embedded below), Gorkem Yigit, Principal Analyst, Analysys Mason argues that the new, distributed IT/OT applications will drive the shift from cloud-native to edge-native infrastrcuture.
The talk by Gorkem on '5G and edge network clouds: industry progress and the shape of the new market' from Layer123 World Congress 2021 is as follows:
A blog post by ADVA has a nice short summary of the image on the top that was also presented at a webinar earlier. The following is an extract from that blog post:
The diagram compares hyperscale (“cloud-native infrastructure”) on the left with hyper-localized (“edge-native infrastructure”) on the right.
Computing: The traditional hyperscale cloud is built on centralized and pooled resources. This approach enables unlimited scalability. In contrast, compute at the edge has limited scalability, and may require additional equipment to grow applications. But the initial cost at the edge is correspondingly low, and grows linearly with demand. That compares favorably to the initial cost for a hyperscale data center, which may be tens of millions of dollars.
Location sensitivity and latency: Users of the hyperscale data center assume their workloads can run anywhere, and latency is not a major consideration. In contrast, hyper-localized applications are tied to a particular location. This might be due to new laws and regulations on data sovereignty that require that information doesn’t leave the premises or country. Or it could be due to latency restrictions as with 5G infrastructure. In either case, shipping data to a remote hyperscale data center is not acceptable.
Hardware: Modern hyperscale data centers are filled with row after row of server racks – all identical. That ensures good prices from bulk purchases, as well as minimal inventory requirements for replacements. The hyper-localized model is more complicated. Each location must be right-sized, and supply-chain considerations come into play for international deployments. There also may be a menagerie of devices to manage.
Connectivity: Efficient use of hyperscale data centers depends on reliable and high-bandwidth connectivity. That is not available for some applications. Or they may be required to operate when connectivity is lost. An interesting example of this case is data processing in space, where connectivity is slow and intermittent.
Cloud stack: Hyperscale and hyper-localized deployments can host VMs and containers. In addition, hyper-localized edge clouds can host serverless applications, which are ideal for small workloads.
Security: Hyperscale data centers use a traditional perimeter-based security model. Once you are in, you are in. Hyper-localized deployments can provide a zero-trust model. Each site is secured as with a hyperscale model, but each application can also be secured based on specific users and credentials.
You don’t have to choose upfront
So, which do you pick? Hyperscale or hyper-localized?
The good news is that you can use both as needed, if you make some good design choices.
Cloud-native: You should design for cloud-native portability. That means using technologies such as containers and a micro-services architecture.
Cloud provider supported edge clouds: Hyperscale cloud providers are now supporting local deployments. These tools enable users to move workloads to different sites based on the criteria discussed above. Examples include IBM Cloud Satellite, Amazon Outposts, Google Anthos, Azure Stack and Azure Arc.
You can also learn more about this topic in the Analysys Mason webinar, “From cloud-native to edge-native computing: defining the cloud platform for new use cases.”. You can also download the slides from there after registration.
Not long ago we looked at the 'Impact of 5G on Lawful Interception and Law Enforcement' by SS8. David Anstiss, Senior Solutions Architect at SS8 Networks gave another interesting talk on Evolving Location and Encryption Needs of LEAs in a 5G world at Telecoms Europe Telco to Techco virtual event in March.
In this talk, David provided an insight into how 5G is impacting lawful interception and the challenges Law Enforcement Agencies face as they work with Communication Service Providers to gather intelligence and safeguard society. While there is an overlap with the previous talk, in this video David looked at a real world example with WhatsApp. The talk also covered:
Real-world problems with 5GC encryption
5G location capabilities and the impact on law enforcement investigations
Our blog post on ATIS Release-16 webinar has been one of the popular posts so it's no brainer that people will surely find this Release 17/18 update useful as well.
The moderator for this webinar was Iain Sharp, Principal Technologist at ATIS. The following were the speakers and the topics they spoke on:
Services: Greg Schumacher, Global Standards, T-Mobile USA
Systems Architecture and Core Networks: Puneet Jain, Principal Engineer and Director of Technical Standards at Intel Corporation, and 3GPP SA2 Chairman
Radio Access Network: Wanshi Chen, Senior Director,Technology at Qualcomm, and 3GPP RAN Chairman
In Release 17, 3GPP delivered important updates to 5G specifications to broaden their range of commercial applications and improve the efficiency of networks. 3GPP is now starting standardization of Release 18. This webinar provides an up-to-date view of the completed 3GPP Release 17 work with a particular focus on how the work is expanding capabilities of 5G and enhancing the technical performance of the mobile system.
The webinar will cover:
The status of 3GPP's work and the organization's roadmap for the future
The main themes the delivered Release 17 features in 3GPP specifications
How enhancements to 5G are helping the 5G market proposition (e.g., through new service opportunities, or enhanced efficiency of 5G networks)
The webinar will give a technical overview of 3GPP's Release 17 content and its benefits to 5G networks. It is suitable for people in technical roles and technical executives who want to understand the current state of 5G standardization.
The video is embedded below and the slides are available here:
Glad to see that 3GPP Rel-19 work has already started as can be seen in the roadmap below.
In the last week of March 2022, 3GPP Release 17 reached stage 3 functional freeze. Now the ASN work is ongoing and it will be frozen in June 2022. After that point, any changes will need to be submitted to 3GPP as CR (change request) and would have to be agreed by everyone (or unopposed).
Juan Montojo, Vice President, Technical Standards, Qualcomm Technoloigies, in his blog post reminds us:
Release 17 has been completed with its scope largely intact, despite the fact that the entire release was developed in the midst of a pandemic that hit the world, including 3GPP, right after the scope of the Release was approved in December 2019. 3GPP has been operating through electronic means from the latter part of January 2020 and has yet to get back to face-to-face meetings and interactions. The return to face-to-face meetings is not expected before June 2022. Release 17 completion not only marks the conclusion of the first phase of the 5G technology evolution, but it is a testament to the mobile ecosystem’s resiliency and commitment to drive 5G forward. I couldn’t be more proud of 3GPP, and our team, in particular, as Qualcomm Technologies led the efforts across a wide range of projects. Release 17 delivers another performance boost to the 5G system and continues expanding 5G into new devices, applications, and deployments.
The blog post briefly explains the 'New and enhanced 5G system capabilities' as well as features related to 'Expansion to new 5G devices and applications' as shown in the image on the top.
In addition, 3GPP Rel-17 has many other projects as can be seen in the image above. 3GPP TR 21.917: Release 17 Description; Summary of Rel-17 Work Items has a summary of all the items above but it is still undergoing revision.
Juan also did a webinar on this topic with Fierce Wireless, the video is embedded below:
Network Slicing is a hot topic on our blogs and it looks like people can't get enough of it. So here is a short introductory tutorial from Wray Castle.
The video embedded below explores what Network Slicing is, how it is used, and how it is deployed in the 5G network, as well as (briefly) the role of MEC (Multi Access Edge Computing) in support of specific use cases and potential slice deployments.
Artificial Intelligence and Machine Learning have moved on from just being buzzwords to bringing much needed optimization and intelligence in devices, networks and infrastructure; whether on site, on the edge or in the cloud.
Qualcomm has been very active in talking about AI/ML in webinars and on their site. A detailed blog post looking at 'What’s the role of artificial intelligence in the future of 5G and beyond?' is available here. It was posted in time for a Light Reading webinar where Gabriel Brown, Principal Analyst – Mobile Networks and 5G, Heavy Reading and Tingfang Ji, Senior Director, Engineering - Wireless R&D, Qualcomm discuss the topic. The video is embedded below and slide deck is available here.
Louis Scialabba, Senior Director of Marketing at Mavenir, looking at AI and Analytics spoke at Layer 123 conference on the topic, 'AI/ML for Next Gen 5G Mobile Networks'. His talk is embedded below and a blog post by him on the topic, 'The RIC Opens a New World of Opportunities for CSPs' is available here.
Over the last few years, Ralf Kreher has done some fantastic posts on Minimization of Drive Testing (MDT) on this blog (links at the bottom of this post). To complement that, here is a basic introductory tutorial looking at what exactly is meant by MDT and how it's done.
Video embedded below:
The slides from the presentation are available here.
At Telecoms Europe 5G 2021 event, David Anstiss, Senior Solutions Architect, SS8 Networks gave a talk on Impact of 5G on lawful interception and law enforcement. The talk provided an insight into how 5G is impacting lawful interception, and the challenges faced by intelligences agencies as they work with communication service providers to gather information, to safeguard society.
The talk, followed by Q&A is embedded below:
You may also find this blog post titled, 'Five Challenges of Gathering Digital Evidence in a 5G World' by David Anstiss, interesting.
Surely you have heard me talk about the benefits of 5G Standalone and why is it needed. At Telecoms Europe 5G 2021, Dr. Kim K Larsen, CTIO, T-Mobile Netherlands, presented a talk on what exactly will 5G Standalone deliver. The video of his talk and slides are embedded below.
I have argued a few times now that it would make much more sense to be able to make access and core independent of each other. 3GPP 5G Standards already have a feature available from Release-16 onwards that enables this with 5G Core, Standalone networks.
We use our smart devices currently for voice and data communications. When we are indoor, many times the data goes over Wi-Fi. This is what tempted operators to move to WiFi for voice solution as well. Many operators are now enabling Voice of WiFi in their network to provide reliable voice coverage indoors.
While this works currently without any issues, when operators start offering new native services and applications, like XR over 5G, the current approach won't help. When our devices are connected over Wi-Fi at present, they are unable to take advantage of operator core or services. With access and core independence, this will no longer be an issue.
I gave a short (15 mins) virtual presentation at 5G Techritory this year. I argued not just for WWC but also looked at what 5G features have a potential for revolution. It's embedded below.
I am starting to get a feeling that people may be becoming overwhelmed with all the new 5G features and standards update. That is why this presentation by Mikael Höök, Director Radio Research at Ericsson, at Brooklyn 6G Summit (B6GS) caught my attention.
The talk discusses the network infrastructure progress made in the previous two years to better illustrate the advanced 5G timeline to discovering 6G requirements. At the end of the talk, there was a quick summary of the four flagship features that are shown in the picture above. The talk is embedded below, courtesy of IEEE TV
In addition to this talk, October 2021 issue of Ericsson Technology Review covers the topic "5G evolution toward 5G advanced: An overview of 3GPP releases 17 and 18". You can get the PDF here.
I have covered the basics of these flagship features in the following posts:
Google announced that its latest smartphone OS will include support for 5G network slicing. Last week Telecom TV brought this news to my attention. The article explains:
It's a move designed to leverage its expertise in devices in order to give it the edge over its rival hyperscalers.
It comes in two flavours. The first is for enterprise-owned handsets, and routes all data sent and received by a device over the network slices provided by that company's mobile operator. Android 12 gives operators the ability to manage slices using a new dynamic policy control mechanism called User Equipment Route Selection Policy (URSP). URSP enables devices to automatically switch between different network slices according to which application they are using. For example, someone working for a financial institution might require a highly-secure network slice for sending and receiving sensitive corporate data, but will then require a reliable, high-throughput, low-latency slice so they can participate in a video meeting.
The second flavour is implemented in the work profile. For years, enterprises have had the option of creating work profiles on Android devices – irrespective of whether they are owned by the organisation or the individual – to use as a separate repository for enterprise apps and data. When Android 12 comes out next year, enterprises will be able to route data to and from that repository over a network slice.
Google said it has already carried out network slicing tests with both Ericsson and Nokia using test versions of its recently released Pixel 6 smartphone running on the as-yet-unreleased Android 12 OS.
It's a replacement for enterprise APNs for now. So not earth-shattering, but a start nonetheless.
Perhaps indicates that enterprise privacy/security/policy might be the major use-case for slicing for the foreseeable future?
Last week Taiwanese operator Far EasTone (FET) and Ericsson announced they have completed the world’s first proof of concept (PoC) for simultaneously connecting multiple network slices per device running on Android 12 commercial release. The press release said:
The trial, carried out on FET’s 5G standalone (SA) infrastructure built on Ericsson’s radio access network and cloud-native Core network, successfully demonstrated the 5G user equipment slicing policy feature (User Equipment Route Selection Policy, or URSP) on multiple Android devices. This marks a breakthrough in network slicing capabilities on a 5G standalone network and paves the way for further ecosystem development in this important area.
With more 5G networks evolving to standalone architecture around the globe, end-to-end network slicing, which includes Ericsson RAN Slicing to secure Quality of Service (QoS) differentiation, plays a key role in enabling new services for end users, with which multiple virtual 5G networks are created on top of one physical network. The 5G trial, in collaboration with FET, Ericsson and Android, went even further in network slicing capabilities by introducing and demonstrating 5G user equipment (UE) slicing policy (URSP) features that allow devices to simultaneously operate on dynamic policy control and selection between multiple 5G network slices. This enables the steering of applications and services with specific requirements to defined slices without switching devices.
Multiple slices allow devices to have multiple profiles to secure different levels of experience, security, and privacy requirements, based on the needs of the different applications and in correspondence with the user profile. For instance, a device can have a personal profile with private data from apps or off-work entertainment, and a work profile with enterprises productivity apps. With URSP features, employers can customize the work profile with increased security and enable better use of RAN Slicing with QoS so that enterprise-related apps can work even during network congestion.
Some security-sensitive apps, such as mobile banking, can also benefit from different routing mechanisms of the traffic enabled by URSP. For instance, the banking app would not need to send its traffic to the internet and then to the app server as it does today. Instead, it could go straight to the app server and avoid the routing through internet. With the shortest route by connecting to a defined slice, users could reduce the risk of being attacked by hackers.
Along with the concept of network slicing and features in the RAN and Core network, UE Route Selection Policy (URSP) is introduced as a way to manage network slice information for the UE. URSP is a network slice feature enabled by the PCF which informs the network slice status to the UE via the AMF. In 4G network systems, it was near impossible to install new services in the network for a UE. But through the URSP feature, 5G network operators can easily configure new service for a UE. Figure 12 (top of this blog post) shows the difference in network slice selection in 4G and 5G Network. In 5G network, slice selection policy can be configured dynamically through URSP, while slice selection policy is pre-defined and cannot be changed dynamically in 4G network.
URSP contains OSId, AppId, IP descriptors to define the application and Single-Network Slice Selection Assistance Information (S-NSSAI), Data Network Name (DNN), Session and Service Continuity (SSC) mode information for the application and network slice mapping.
The S-NSSAI identifies each network slice service and provides information to properly assign network slice/functions. An S-NSSAI is comprised of:
A Slice/Service type (SST), which refers to the expected network slice behavior in terms of features and services;
A Slice Differentiator (SD), which is an optional information that complements the Slice/Service type(s) to differentiate amongst multiple network slices of the same Slice/Service type.
3GPP allows the use of the Slice Differentiator (SD) field that can build customized network slices. The SD field can be used to describe services, customer information and priority.
Here is a short video from Mpirical explaining 5G UE Route Selection.
It it worth reminding here that this feature, like many of the other 5G features, is dependent on 5G Core. We hope that the transition to 5G Standalone Networks happens as soon as possible.
We just made a tutorial on this topic looking at where most of the power consumption in the mobile network occurs and some of the ways this power consumption can be reduced.
The chart in the Tweet above (also in the presentation) clearly shows that the energy costs for operators run in many millions. Small power saving schemes can still have a big impact on the total energy reduction, thereby saving huge amounts of energy and costs.
The March issue of ZTE Communications Magazine contains some good articles looking at how to tackle the energy challenges in the network going forward. This recent article by Ericsson is also a good source of information on this topic.
Anyway, the slides and the video of the tutorial is embedded below:
We have covered various topics in our blog posts on millimeter wave spectrum and even going beyond 52.6 GHz in FR2. A Qualcomm webinar from back in January expands on many of the topics that I looked superficially in various posts (links at the bottom).
The following is edited from the Qualcomm blog post:
5G NR in unlicensed spectrum (NR-U) was standardized in Release 16 and it is a key enabler for the 5G expansion to new use cases and verticals, providing expanded spectrum access to mobile operators, service providers, and industry players. At the same time, we are starting to push the mmWave boundary to even higher bands toward the sub-Terahertz (i.e., >100 GHz) range. Expected in Release 17, 5G NR will support spectrum bands up to 71 GHz, leveraging the 5G NR Release 15 scalable numerology and flexible framework. This opens up 5G to operate in the globally unlicensed 60 GHz band, which can fuel a broad range of new applications and deployments.
One daunting challenge that mobile operators will face when expanding 5G mmWave network coverage is the cost of deploying additional base stations for mmWave, which usually requires new fiber optics backhaul installations. Release 16-defined IAB allows a base station to not just provide wireless access for its user devices (e.g., smartphones) but also the ability to backhaul wirelessly via neighboring base stations using the same mmWave spectrum. IAB opens the door to more flexible densification strategies, allowing mobile operators to quickly add new base stations to their networks before having to install new fiber to increase backhaul capacity.
Release 16 established foundational IAB capabilities, such as dynamic topology adaptation for load balancing and blockage mitigation, and Release 17+ will further enhance IAB by bringing new features like full-duplex operation, topology redundancy, and ML-based network management.
Beyond IAB, there is a rich roadmap of other new features that can further improve 5G mmWave system performance and efficiency. The webinar embedded below is presented by Ozge Koymen, Senior Director, Technology, Qualcomm Technologies, Inc. It covers the following topics:
Qualcomm's vision for 5G mmWave and the new opportunities it poises to bring for the broader ecosystem
mmWave capabilities and enhancements coming in Release -16 and beyond
Qualcomm’s role in mobilizing and democratizing 5G mmWave to usher in new experiences
Latest update on the global commercial rollout of 5G mmWave networks and devices
China Mobile, along with a bunch of other organizations including China Unicom, China Telecom, CAICT, Huawei, Nokia, Ericsson, etc., produced a white paper on what technology evolutions will we see as part of 5G-Advanced. This comes not so long after the 3GPP 5G-Advanced Workshop which a blogged about here.
The abstract of the whitepaper says:
The commercialization of 5G networks is accelerating globally. From the perspective of industry development drivers, 5G communications are considered the key to personal consumption experience upgrades and digital industrial transformation. Major economies around the world require 5G to be an essential part of long-term industrial development. 5G will enter thousands of industries in terms of business, and technically, 5G needs to integrate DOICT (DT - Data Technology, OT - Operational Technology, IT - Information Technology and CT - Communication Technology) and other technologies further. Therefore, this white paper proposes that continuous research on the follow-up evolution of 5G networks—5G-Advanced is required, and full consideration of architecture evolution and function enhancement is needed.
This white paper first analyzes the network evolution architecture of 5G-Advanced and expounds on the technical development direction of 5G-Advanced from the three characteristics of Artificial Intelligence, Convergence, and Enablement. Artificial Intelligence represents network AI, including full use of machine learning, digital twins, recognition and intention network, which can enhance the capabilities of network's intelligent operation and maintenance. Convergence includes 5G and industry network convergence, home network convergence and space-air-ground network convergence, in order to realize the integration development. Enablement provides for the enhancement of 5G interactive communication and deterministic communication capabilities. It enhances existing technologies such as network slicing and positioning to better help the digital transformation of the industry.
The paper can be downloaded from China Mobile's website here or from Huawei's website here. A video of the paper launch is embedded below:
Nokia's Antti Toskala wrote a blog piece providing the first real glimpse of 5G-Advanced, here.
The National Governors Association (NGA) in the USA is the voice of the leaders of 55 states, territories, and commonwealths. On May 24th, the Resource Center for State Cybersecurity featured a panel of experts from AT&T for a conversation on understanding the 5G ecosystem, security risks, supply chain resilience and the challenges and opportunities that exist around deployment.
The talk highlighted top 5G security areas of concern. The top three being:
Increased attack surface due to massive increase in connectivity
Greater number & variety of devices accessing the network
Complexity of extending security policy to new types of non-traditional and IoT devices
Some of the Security Advantages with 5G are highlighted as follows:
Software Defined Networking/Virtualization
Stronger 3GPP encryption for over-the-air encryption
Subscriber Identity Privacy
Roaming or network-to-network protection
Network Slicing
The slides of the talk is available here and the video is as follows:
Last year, Professor Nigel Linge Director of the Computer Science, Networking and Mathematics Directorate and Professor of Telecommunications at the University of Salford, Manchester presented a talk at IET, titled "Nobody saw it coming - the rise and rise of the camera-phone ".
The following is the summary of the talk from the flyer (can't find link):
When you buy a new smartphone, what features do you look for? It is probably a safe bet that its ability to make and receive phone calls is well down the list, if on it at all! Yet the quality of the camera is probably near the top. How ironic that a technology that began life as a mobile telephone is now marketed and sold based on everything else it can do. This webinar will examine the extraordinary rise and rise of the camera-phone, from the Sharp J-SHO4 in 2000, to pushing the megapixel count up from one in 2004 to five in 2006, and then eight in 2008 to today's one-hundred plus megapixel, 4K HD video recording, multi-camera, offerings. From the first selfies, to transforming social media and turning everyone into an on-the-spot news reporter, the camera-phone has had a phenomenal impact on society in its first twenty years.
I definitely recommend watching the video, it's available on the IET page here.
