5 Things You Should Know about 5G Networks
Introduction: Why Should You Care about 5G?
Beginning in 2019, mobile phone providers initiated the distribution of the fifth-generation (5G) wireless cellular network standard. 5G networks are the intended successor to 4G networks. While 5G and 4G are both cellular networks, 5G is designed to be much faster, have higher bandwidth, and improve cellular service quality - all while utilizing significantly less energy.
Sounds great, right? Well, like most new technological advancements, the deployment of 5G brings novel security challenges and additional cybersecurity threats. Read more below to learn how 5G will likely change the cellular communication landscape, introduce larger-scale security risks, and even potentially harm wildlife populations.
1. Compared to 4G networks, 5G is projected to be faster, more efficient, more flexible, and less prone to connectivity errors.
According to the mobile industry, 5G will transmit data at a rate of 10 Gb/sec. This is 600 times faster than 4G network speeds and would allow users to simultaneously stream high-definition movies. 5G technologies also have low latency, indicating that they can enable rapid communications between devices separated by long distances with minimal delays. Additionally, the addition of 5G would also enhance network coverage for devices in crowded areas, such as concerts and other large events.
2. It can cover large connectivity areas.
The low latency and reliable connectivity features of 5G will likely improve content streaming and communications from anywhere in the world, even in remote regions with historically less coverage. It can even provide services such as broadband or TV to customers without the need for fiber optic cabling or cable providers. This would also help physicians perform remote surgeries by accessing network-facing surgical tools located several thousand miles away.
3.) 5G will be crucial to Internet of Things (IoT) devices and other embedded systems.
Because 5G can provide services to many devices at once, it plays a key part in the development of IoT technologies. For instance, 5G sensor technology is projected to aid self-driving vehicles, allowing these cars to communicate with one another and detect traffic features such as stoplights, parking meters, and roads.
4.) The interoperability and interconnectivity of 5G will likely bring increased threat vectors and cybersecurity risks.
More access means more problems. In other words, because 5G technologies allow for more devices to connect to the network at any given times, there are more opportunities for malicious actors to exploit victims. Below are a few primary cybersecurity risks associated with 5G:
Increased scale of supply chain attacks
Inadequate management of network slicing
Ability of 5G networks to support less secure, 4G legacy infrastructures
Increased opportunities for signal interference or malicious jamming
Network vulnerabilities resulting from use of common protocols such as HTTP and TLS
More code injection attacks due to expanded reliance on software-defined networking (SDN)
Enhanced risks to user data privacy
5.) 5G may be both beneficial and harmful for the environment.
Remember that 5G networks, as well as any previous generation of wireless cellular technology, utilize electromagnetic radiation. In order to communicate between devices, 5G networks facilitate the propagation of different types of waves and energy throughout space. Of course, this method of sending bits of data over the air will have consequences for the natural physical world.
The good: Given that 5G requires significantly less energy than 4G, it is widely believed that 5G will reduce overall energy usage and emissions. Additionally, 5G technologies are projected to be incorporated in the creation of “smart cities,” urban spaces that leverage digital technology to create more efficient and sustainable solutions. City governments are looking to 5G networks, as well as artificial intelligence and IoT, to better manage industrial systems, process population data, monitor community services, and even detect crime.
The bad: Although it is not yet known to what extent 5G will affect the environment, evidence has shown that these technologies have already had negative impacts. For instance, the deployment of 5G will necessitate that the world discard old devices in favor of newer ones that enable 5G connectivity. This produces massive levels of electronic waste. Separately, research has shown that related radiation has harmed bird and insect populations, causing issues in their breeding and migration patterns.
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