{"id":20139,"date":"2021-02-12T16:20:11","date_gmt":"2021-02-12T13:20:11","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/saudishopper.com.sa\/en\/?p=20139"},"modified":"2026-03-27T20:28:05","modified_gmt":"2026-03-27T17:28:05","slug":"rising-security-concerns-in-the-telecom-industry","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/saudishopper.com.sa\/en\/rising-security-concerns-in-the-telecom-industry\/","title":{"rendered":"Rising Security Concerns in the Telecom Industry"},"content":{"rendered":"\n

The Telecom industry keeps the world connected. From private communications to business interactions, it is an intrinsic part of our daily lives, and we take many elements for granted. Be it via the phone, across the internet, over airwaves, or cables, this sector makes it possible to communicate in rapid time anywhere around the world. From satellite companies, internet providers, telephone corporations, the infrastructure behind these organizations makes it feasible for all our videos, audio, and text to be sent worldwide, which aids development in practically every industry.\u00a0<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u2018Telecom Service Revenue Worldwide Equates to 1,130bn euros\u2019 –\u00a0Statista<\/u><\/a><\/p>\n\n\n\n

As technology has developed in recent years, our world has grown, and as the threat landscape has changed, cyber-attacks\u00a0specifically against the telecom industry are<\/u><\/a> soaring. Given that this industry controls a vast majority of complex and critical national infrastructure, the impact of a successful attack is not only significant but extensive.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

In this blog, we aim to advise on the current risks and highlight potential future threats concerning the telecommunication industry and explain how providers can use Threat Intelligence to help protect their digital environments and critical infrastructure from emerging cyber threats.\u00a0<\/p>\n\n\n\n

But protecting telecom infrastructure is far from easy. The industry understands that no threat can be tackled in isolation and that threat actors will continue to exploit vulnerabilities in adopted technologies to achieve their goals.\u00a0<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Key Security Issues <\/h2>\n\n\n\n

Telco is often the first line of defense, and the majority of Governments, including the UK, uses critical national infrastructure such as British Telecommunication (BT). The problem is, when people think of Telco\u2019s, they often associate this with organizations such as Virgin Mobile or EE. These are not Telco\u2019s. These are mobile phone operators. BT is the landline that most mobile phone operators pay a little bit to because they are the ones controlling the pipes.\u00a0<\/p>\n\n\n\n

BT does their own cyber defense, and governments view that as the provider, BT is the one controlling the pipes going in, so they can also keep it clean and secure. BT runs these pipes, and these pipes travel under the sea, tunneling under beaches, up through maintenance holes, to provide internet to the masses. With each maintenance hole and each line, there are multiple fiber entry points, all in need of continual security maintenance.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Telecommunication threat maps and cyber risk systems are merging. The speed and storage capabilities required are endless. Telecom operators are transforming themselves from network companies to cloud service companies to improve business operations efficiencies, roll out new services and applications, and store and distribute content.\u00a0<\/p>\n\n\n\n

As telecoms are often a gateway into multiple businesses, threats can either target a specific telecom company, its third-party providers, or a telecom service’s subscribers. These\u00a0attacks come in a variety of forms<\/u><\/a>. Below are some of the most common attack vectors.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

IoT<\/h2>\n\n\n\n

One of the most significant challenges for Telco\u2019s and Internet Service Providers (ISPs) in the current climate is how the Internet of Things (IoT) will impact the industry. IoT has skyrocketed in terms of its application with connected devices, creating more entry points in the process. Not all these points are patched properly, and they leave accounts for users, clients and companies exposed.\u00a0<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201847% of the most vulnerable devices are security cameras installed on home networks, followed by smart hubs (15%), like Google Home and Amazon Alexa, and network-attached storage devices (12%).\u2019 \u2013 GDPR PrivSec Report<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Insider Threats<\/h2>\n\n\n\n

While some attacks are vindictive, an issue within telecom is that many employees\/insiders are completely unaware that they are a threat in the first place. Few within the industry receive training in cybersecurity measures. And with over 30% of people now working remotely, connections to unsecured networks are higher than ever.\u00a0<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u2018Empirical evidence of unsecured Wi-Fi risks is worrying \u2014 not only because many applications do not encrypt transmitted data but also because people continue to use the networks.<\/u><\/a>\u2019 (\u00a0Factors Influencing Users to Use Unsecured Wi-Fi Networks: Evidence in the Wild.<\/em>\u00a0Nissy Sombatruang, Lucky Onwuzurike, Angela Sasse, Michelle Baddeley.)<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Third-Party Risk<\/h2>\n\n\n\n

Third parties, including vendors, partners, e-mail providers, service providers, web hosting, law firms, data management companies, and subcontractors, could easily be a backdoor into crucial infrastructure for attackers to infiltrate. Maintaining your company’s security, your company’s safety, and the security of the providers involved in the business can be tricky. That\u2019s why managed security services are essential to monitoring all elements of a given network.\u00a0<\/p>\n\n\n\n

DDoS <\/h2>\n\n\n\n

DDoS, including advanced distributed reflection denial of service (DrDoS) using standard network protocols and botnets consisting of compromised mobile and IoT devices, are prevalent.\u00a0Clients of Telco\u2019s expect services to run seamlessly 24\/7. Any interruption or outage that affects the quality of service can result in significant financial losses.\u00a0<\/p>\n\n\n\n

A recent example includes an attack on telecom operators in North America, who were \u2018reportedly hit by a Distributed Denial of Services Cyberattack in what is believed to be touted as the largest cyber-attack launched telecom operators of America to date. And reports are in that the attack caused cell phone network disruptions in states like Florida, Georgia, New York, Atlanta, Chicago, Miami, Fort Lauderdale, Los Angeles, California, and Houston Texas.\u2019\u00a0Reports Cyber Security Insiders.<\/u><\/a><\/p>\n\n\n\n

Terrorism and State Actors <\/h2>\n\n\n\n

Via remote infiltration, bad actors can control physical elements that can influence critical infrastructure and manipulate outcomes. As well as acquire valuable intelligence on intellectual property, trade agreements, and personal data.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

These are just a handful of threats. There are many more vulnerabilities that telecommunication providers must look out for. Including\u2026<\/p>\n\n\n\n