Organizations building and deploying 5G networks face new cybersecurity and privacy risks stemming from the complexity of modern cellular and cloud-based infrastructure. To help organizations better understand and implement 5G security capabilities, the NIST National Cybersecurity Center of Excellence (NCCoE) released six final publications in its Applying 5G Cybersecurity and Privacy Capabilities white paper series. These publications help organizations better understand how key 5G security and privacy capabilities operate and provide practical and actionable guidelines to support more secure deployment of 5G networks.
The 5G Security Landscape: Standards and Responsibilities
5G Cellular networks are based on technical standards developed by the 3rd Generation Partnership Project (3GPP), allowing global compatibility and helping the industry benefit from economies of scale. While these standards specify security capabilities, it is up to individual network operators and users to determine how to configure and implement these protections within complex operational environments to ensure they function properly. In addition, cybersecurity protections for underlying cloud technology stacks used in 5G networks are not included in the scope of these standards but are essential for ensuring strong security protections.
A Holistic Approach to 5G Cybersecurity
This work was developed through collaboration with 11 industry collaborators through demonstrations on our NCCoE 5G cybersecurity testbed, where researchers evaluated how specific 5G security and privacy capabilities operate within real-world network architectures and infrastructure. Insights from this research help organizations gain a better understanding of 5G cybersecurity and privacy challenges and develop effective strategies to mitigate risks. The findings will also contribute to broader discussions as industry looks toward future generations of wireless technology including 6G.
Six publications are now available in the series:
- NIST Cybersecurity White Paper (CSWP) 36: Applying 5G Cybersecurity and Privacy Capabilities – An introduction to the series and provides an overview 5G cybersecurity and privacy challenges.
- NIST CSWP 36A: Protecting Subscriber Identifiers with SUCI – Guidelines on enabling Subscription Concealed Identifier (SUCI) protection to safeguard subscriber identities.
- NIST CSWP 36B: Using Hardware-Enabled Security to Ensure 5G System Platform Integrity – An overview of employing hardware-enabled security capabilities.
- NIST CSWP 36C: Reallocation of Temporary Identities – Details how temporary identities can protect subscriber identities (IDs).
- NIST CSWP 36D: No SUPI-Based Paging – An overview of “no Subscription Permanent Identifier (SUPI) based paging,” to prevent attackers from identifying and locating users.
- NIST CSWP 36E: 5G Network Security Design Principles – Provides network infrastructure design principles for improving cybersecurity and privacy.
Stay Informed and Engage with the NCCoE 5G Community
The NCCoE 5G project team plans to build on this work and release additional white papers on 5G cybersecurity in the future. To stay up to date and share your input on future white papers in this series, we encourage you to join the NCCoE 5G Community of Interest.
By collaborating with the NCCoE, you can contribute to the development of comprehensive cybersecurity solutions and stay ahead of emerging threats.
