Faster Speed Needs Higher Security

 2021-12-27 By: Elroy Yao



Commercial 5G connectivity was made available from 2019 with varying accounts on which country had it first or which company released it first. Regardless of the positions or the assertions the rivaling parties had and indeed, may still have; one thing is for sure: that 5G adoption is increasing globally. According to Telecompetitor, 5G’s adoption rate is 3x of 4G with adoption expected to grow to 619 million globally by the end of 2021.

The public will benefit from 5G adoption, however 4G is often adequate for most general use purposes and 5G might be seen more as a wanted upgrade, but not a necessary one. Some sources will point to vertical applications as where 5G is truly needed; but as with many new connections, security might be a concern. Industrial use cases that will need a higher security might be more interested in a private 5G network to minimize possible data leaks.

Upgrading to 5G dedicated and Beyond 5G ready infrastructure will require the funding as well as investment from governments or large corporations. However, startups will be able to provide solutions for private 5G networks as well as improving 5G users’ security. In this edition of the InnoVEX Editorial, we discuss exhibitors of InnoVEX Online 2021 that aim to ensure users’ security & privacy in vertical applications or private 5G networks.

Always Connected in Rain and Shine

Wireless 5G connections generally have a shorter range compared to 4G despite its higher speed & bandwidth and lower latency. These characteristics would be most beneficial for IoT connections which often require multiple devices transmitting vast amounts of data rapidly for a central system to receive, process, and act or react to. For vertical applications, such as in a smart factory or smart building; IoT devices are expected to function almost nonstop with no delays and perfect stability. The shorter range of 5G reach might bring questions for outdoor uses, but reducing the size of the grid to ensure coverage would be a solution to plug the gaps and making the network private will be able to reduce the possibility of unintended entries by unwanted parties.

The eSIX edgeWares 5G CPE might be the solution for people interested in an industrial grade wireless outdoor gateway. The eSix CPE can operate in harsh environments, is resistant to extreme temperature & power surges, and features IP65 design with an internal battery to ensure stable operations. The CPE is also configured with 4G/5G multi-WAN and tri-band concurrent MIMO WiFi 6, dedicated designed antennas for high gain and wider range signal coverage. These features are needed as extreme weather phenomena become more common. With extreme heat, cold, and severe weather patterns happening around the world in increasing frequency; safety would be an important consideration in addition to performance and stability.

Ensure Security and Secure Connections

IoT devices have been a source of both great expectations and great wariness. While they are vital for various functions, they are known to be cyber-attack targets and increased security will be necessary. According to a Microsoft blog post, IoT security is a point of concern for many organizations, with data privacy being the main worry, followed by network-level security. While 5G will be the ideal connection for IoT devices, an article by Trend Micro pointed out that it might increase the security risks as cloud, data and IoT threats merge in the connection. The article further explained the main concerns for telco providers offering 5G which includes: not having enough knowledge or tools to deal with the vulnerabilities, confidentiality & privacy threats, increased attack surface, etc.

Taiwan Data Science’s WISIDE might be able to reduce the attack surface by identifying the various signal sources as evidence of activity. By leveraging the data, WISIDE can protect the users’ privacy and security as well as provide accurate calculation and information about individuals in the area. This solution might be able to utilize 5G connections to collect data and identify individuals in the network coverage area. The key application scenario will be to help prevent human operated ransomwares which often begins with a deep research and study of the potential target.

Learn more about eSIX, Taiwan Data Science, and other InnoVEX Online 2021 Exhibitors here

Learn more about human operated ransomwares in the COMPUTEX 2022 Symposium forum: The Present and Future of Cybersecurity Under the Wave of Digital Transformation

Look forward to more updates from InnoVEX
Operating for the whole year, the InnoVEX ONLINE platform is active 24/7 and visitors can check out the exhibitors at any time and even contact them directly through the PinChat function built into the platform. There will also be news from InnoVEX regularly that will be published and sent via the weekly InnoVEX Tech Startup News digital newsletter. The content will also include highlighted exhibitors, pavilions, and other features of InnoVEX ONLINE 2021. Subscribe to the InnoVEX Tech Startup News here and never miss an update from InnoVEX.

InnoVEX 2022 is now open for Registration
In addition to the online platform, the 2022 InnoVEX onsite exhibition will take place in Taipei, Taiwan from May 24-27,2022. Online registration for both the hybrid exhibition or the InnoVEX ONLINE platform has started for global exhibitors. For more info or registration details, please click here.

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