Super-fast 5G mobile networks promise to connect not just people more effectively, but also machines, objects, and gadgets with more interconnectivity and control. Its high Gbps data transmission speeds, low latency, and large capacity will be beneficial to both consumers and enterprises.
As one early user has discovered, this introduces major new security vulnerabilities. One should be aware of the cybersecurity issues that IoT presently causes for businesses, as well as the amount to which all of those issues will be exacerbated by the transition to 5G. The five important topics that businesses must address while developing 5G implementation plans are listed below.
5G Network Traffic:
With 5G, the number of intelligent devices linked to networks is predicted to skyrocket, as will the volume of traffic on those networks. According to Gartner, the number of corporate and automotive IoT devices will climb to 5.8 billion next year.
Up 21 percent from this year’s estimated total of 4.8 billion IoT endpoints. As a result, these networks are much more appealing to attackers than they are now.
Vulnerable Devices:
The gadgets themselves are the next point of possible weakness. Much of this sector is not concerned about security. Industrial equipment, in particular, frequently uses proprietary operating systems with no capacity to install fixes or licensing that prevent it. They are not intended to be patched.
According to Jonathan Tanner, a senior security researcher at Barracuda Networks, the bulk of IoT security flaws has yet to be resolved. According to him, certain devices have flaws that cannot be resolved with firmware updates or have no method for changing software.
Even when device makers incorporate security protections into the following generation of their products, the old unsecured ones remain in the wild.
Bigger DDoS Attacks:
A distributed denial of service (DDoS) attack occurs when an attacker or attackers attempt to prevent a service from being supplied. This may be accomplished by restricting access to almost everything, including servers, devices, services, networks, apps, and even individual transactions inside applications.
A DDoS assault is initiated by a single system, whereas a DDoS attack is initiated by numerous systems. 5G will significantly increase the bandwidth accessible to devices, and rising bandwidth increases the bandwidth available to IoT bots. The additional bandwidth will be utilized to identify more weak devices and propagate the infection, and there will be more vulnerable devices for botnets to find.
Impersonation Attacks:
Impersonation attacks try to obtain unauthorized access to information systems by impersonating authorized users. Because most 5G networks are not self-contained, they are still susceptible to some of the problems seen in 4G and previous technologies.
One example is the GTP protocol, which is used to carry users and control traffic on 4G and older networks.
It has a flaw that enables the interception of user data, which can result in an impersonation attack. Impersonation attacks are frequently aided by services that use pass-through authentication for ease. This might also expose third-party partners to unwanted access.
Edge Computing Increases the Attack Surface:
Edge computing is increasingly being considered by businesses trying to minimize latency and increase performance for their customers or for their own distributed infrastructure. Edge computing gains even more benefits with 5G, as endpoint devices get additional connectivity capabilities.
Edge computing also significantly expands the attack surface. Companies that haven’t yet begun to consider zero-trust network designs should do so before investing extensively in edge computing equipment. When they do create it, security should be a key priority, not an afterthought.
Conclusion:
The Internet of Things (IoT) is on the rise, with the number of linked devices expected to grow from 700 million to 3.2 billion by 2023. While several causes will contribute to this increase, one of the most crucial will be the development of 5G networks. The impending release of the fifth generation of cellular mobile communications, or 5G, is exciting news for the IoT sector.
This is partly because 5G networks will significantly improve the performance and reliability of these linked devices. However, organizations that heavily engage in IoT security should be cognizant of the potential negative effects of 5G networks. When using 5G networks, it is critical to remain safe and maintain encrypted data security.
