5G Security: Challenges, Opportunities, and the Road Ahead
A special issue of Future Internet (ISSN 1999-5903). This special issue belongs to the section "Cybersecurity".
Deadline for manuscript submissions: 10 April 2025 | Viewed by 11256
Special Issue Editors
Interests: network management; network security; availability; 5G; NFV
Special Issues, Collections and Topics in MDPI journals
Interests: Internet of Things; cybersecurity; knowledge management; bayesian network; recommender systems; embedded systems
Special Issue Information
Dear Colleagues,
Security aspects are becoming of crucial importance across the hyperconnected technological world. In this context, 5G (and its evolution, 6G) represents a key network enabler for a plethora of paradigms, including Internet of Things (IoT), cyber-physical systems (CPSs), multi-access edge computing (MEC), network function virtualization (NFV), software-defined networking (SDN), and many others.
Due to the growing interest both of academia and industry in the broad field of security, for this Special Issue we encourage high-quality research contributions—both theoretical and experimental—and timely survey papers that pinpoint future research directions in this field.
Finally, I would like to thank Mr. Giovanni Galatro and his valuable work for assisting me with this Special Issue.
Topics of interest include, but are not limited to, the following:
- Security protocols in 5G/6G architectures;
- Privacy issues in 5G/6G architectures;
- Security aspects in cloud/edge/fog computing;
- Security aspects in multi-access edge computing (MEC);
- Security aspects in the Internet of Things and/or cyber-physical systems;
- Security management in modern virtualized networks (NFV, SDN, network slicing);
- Access control mechanisms in modern networks;
- Machine learning/artificial intelligence for 5G/6G network security;
- Intrusion detection systems in 5G/6G networks;
- Traffic analysis applied to 5G/6G networks;
- Analytics and big data for network security;
- Optimization techniques to improve 5G/6G network security;
- Resilience strategies to improve 5G/6G network security;
- Security aspects in 5G/6G vehicular communications;
- Security aspects in millimeter-wave communications;
- Security aspects in radio access networks (RANs);
- Security aspects in 5G-oriented hardware (e.g., FPGA);
- Security aspects in smart environments and industrial systems.
Dr. Mario Di Mauro
Dr. Francesco Pascale
Dr. Marco Tambasco
Guest Editors
Manuscript Submission Information
Manuscripts should be submitted online at www.mdpi.com by registering and logging in to this website. Once you are registered, click here to go to the submission form. Manuscripts can be submitted until the deadline. All submissions that pass pre-check are peer-reviewed. Accepted papers will be published continuously in the journal (as soon as accepted) and will be listed together on the special issue website. Research articles, review articles as well as short communications are invited. For planned papers, a title and short abstract (about 100 words) can be sent to the Editorial Office for announcement on this website.
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Planned Papers
The below list represents only planned manuscripts. Some of these manuscripts have not been received by the Editorial Office yet. Papers submitted to MDPI journals are subject to peer-review.
Title: Empowering UAV Network with Moving Target Defense and 5G-SDN: Security and Implementation Perspective
Authors: Ahmed Alismail; Huw Whitworth; Saba Al-Rubaye; Antonios Tsourdos; Liz James; Lawrence Baker
Affiliation: Cranfield University
Abstract: This paper is dedicated to bolstering the resilience of Unmanned Aerial Vehicle (UAV) networks against reconnaissance cyber-attacks. We present a novel algorithmic framework tailored for UAV networks, focusing on IP and Port hopping as a Moving Target Defense (MTD) strategy. This algorithm dynamically modifies IP addresses and communication ports, amplifying network unpredictability and frustrating reconnaissance efforts. We synergise Network-based Moving Target Defense with 5G Software-Defined Networking (SDN) for real-time network policy reconfiguration, facilitating proactive defense measures. Moreover, we incorporate honeypots as a cyber deception strategy, redirecting potential attackers and accumulating valuable insights into their methodologies. Extensive simulations validate the effectiveness of our approach in diminishing reconnaissance success rates and fortifying UAV network security.