5G Adoption Should Change How Organizations Approach Security

Last year, all four wireless carriers began offering 5G, and people couldn't be happier. While some may have to wait until devices and infrastructure fully catch up with demand, the promise of being able to communicate and download at speeds of up to 10Gbps has users and companies eagerly anticipating a very speedy future.

5G promises super-high bandwidth and throughput and ultra low-level latency communication that are up to 20 times faster than 4G LTE. 5G can reach speeds of 20GB per second, while 4G LTE maxes out at 1GB per second. While this is a nice-to-have in many situations, businesses are looking forward to 5G adoption to power more Internet of Things (IoT) devices and enable their employees to perform tasks very quickly.

"This is the first time we've had this type of functionality all at once," said Dmitry Kurbatov, chief technology officer at Positive Technologies, a security solutions provider. "LTE provided huge bandwidth, but the modems used for LTE consumed too much power to be used for more powerful IoT devices. The same is true of 2G: It provided great covering for the network and was accessible everywhere, but the connection speed wasn't good enough for a satisfactory experience."

With the increased spectrum and ability to segment networks, enterprises are likely to start using 5G more and more. Not only will it provide opportunities for coverage that WiFi may not have provided, but it could potentially replace WiFi or Bluetooth in some situations.

While all of this sounds great, it's important to stop and consider the security ramifications. Done right, 5G can actually be the most secure cellular technology to date. 5G encrypts more data, and because it's based on software and runs in the cloud, it's easier to monitor.

But it's not that simple. There is a greater risk of attacks on both IoT and mobile devices, simply because there will be so many more of them. With such fast speeds, employees are likely to choose 5G for their mobile devices instead of WiFi, and employers will use 5G for their IoT sensors.

Read the full article here on Data Center Knowledge.