(The Gist of Science Reporter) 5G & IoT vs Cyber Security

(GIST OF SCIENCE REPORTER) 5G & IoT vs Cyber Security

[December-2020]

5G & IoT vs Cyber Security

The fifth generation of wireless technology is already here. Telecommunications companies like Reliance, AT&T and Sprint have begun testing and rolling out 5G service in major cities of the world, and consumers are expected to have full access to the technology by the end of 2021.
5G tech is important because it will make IoT a reality. This interconnected network of internet-enabled devices already exists. However, its potential is limited by the slow speeds of 4G wireless. The ultra-fast 5G network will allow these devices to transfer exponentially more information, with download speeds of up to 10 Gbps.
The upcoming 5G rollout is one reason why experts predict that more than 36 billion devices will be connected to the internet by the end of 2020.
Unfortunately, all of them will be exposed to security threats. In fact, research has found that the “first wave of IoT attacks” had already begun in 2016.
This makes the expanded IoT a nightmare for cybersecurity experts, who must figure out how to protect cell phones, security systems, vehicles, smart homes and more devices from being breached. The types of vulnerabilities and threats on IoT Devices include:
Cyber espionage: It involves the utilisation of cracking techniques and malicious software to conduct surveillance on the targeted users to gain access to personal information on the existing systems.
Instinctual force attack: It simply means making attempts to guess users’ passwords with the help of automated software, which makes multiple attempts unless it gets the right password to gain access.
Software developers must respond to these threats by integrating security patches into the devices and waiting to release electronics until security has been fully tested and assured. Some of the most common types of attacks to prepare for are botnets, distributed denial of service, Radio Frequency Identity (RFID) spoofing, trojan viruses, malware and malicious scripts.

Protecting IoT Systems and Devices

IoT security methods vary depending on your specific IoT application and your place in the IoT ecosystem. For example, IoT manufacturers should concentrate on building security from the start, making hardware tamper-proof, building secure hardware, ensuring secure upgrades, providing firmware updates/patches and performing dynamic testing.
A solution developer’s focus should be on stable software development and reliable integration. For those deploying IoT systems, hardware security and authentication are critical measures. Likewise, for operators, keeping systems up to date, mitigating malware, auditing, protecting infrastructure and safeguarding credentials is essential.

Some common IoT security measures include:

Network security: Protecting an IoT network includes ensuring port security, disabling port forwarding, and only supervised opening of network ports. Use of anti-malware, firewalls and intrusion detection system/intrusion prevention system, blocking of unauthorized IP addresses, and ensuring systems are always patched and are up to date.
Security gateways: As an intermediary between IoT devices and the network, security gateways must have more computing power, memory and functions than the IoT devices themselves. In this way, they can implement functions such as firewalls to ensure that hackers cannot access the IoT devices to which they connect.
Strong encryption measures are crucial for securing communication between devices. Data storage and transmission should be secured using cryptographic algorithms.
Inclusion of security measures in the design and production phase: IoT developers should include security measures at the start of the development of IoT devices. Ensuring system and data security by default is as critical as is deploying the latest operating systems and using secure hardware.
User sensitization: Users must also be informed about the dangers of IoT systems and about measures that they can take to ensure security from time to time, which could be as simple as updating the default credentials and applying software updates.

Cyber Security – Top Priority

Cybersecurity is expected to remain the top priority for Indian policymakers and corporates over the next several years. That’s because the number of data breaches is rising, and hackers are increasingly using sophisticated techniques like AI to break into well-protected systems. Countries such as India, which are riding a wave of digitisation, must brace themselves for the looming security challenges. Policymakers of the countries have to take proactive measures to develop innovative mechanisms to leverage the IT Potential of the country.

Conclusion:

Finally, the global rollout of 5G wireless technology, combined with the expansion of IoT, means that more vulnerable devices will be connected to the internet over the next several years. This will add up to the cybersecurity challenge and will need a dedicated response from all the stakeholders.