Security for 5G network environments
Loureiro, Luis Carlos Lopes
MSc Thesis · 2023 · University of Coimbra
Supervisors: Tiago José dos Santos Martins da Cruz, Vasco Nuno Sousa Simões Pereira
Abstract
The 5G technology brings several improvements to mobile communication systems. The ability to provide much faster connections, low latency and greater scalability enables 5G to be employed in new areas and contexts, where previous generations of network were not feasible enough, such as autonomous driving, remote healthcare, smart manufacturing, and virtual and augmented reality experiences. To achieve its goals of low latency and high scalability, 5G Networks requires a distributed network architecture with Multi-Access Edge Computing (MEC) at multiple remote points that leads to the introduction of new cloud and virtualization technologies. These access points, combined with the growing number of devices connected to the network, expand the attack surface and create new vulnerabilities, including the heightened risk of Distributed Denial of Service (DDoS) attacks. In addition, the high speed provided by 5G networks enables attackers to generate and distribute massive volumes of malicious traffic more rapidly, further increasing the impact of such attacks on the network. This research work aims to address critical security aspects and challenges in 5G networks against flooding attacks. It begins with the implementation of a testbed that supports 5G Core Network functionalities empowered by orchestration tools, such as Kubernetes, that will enable a set of security tests. These tests include evaluating the security posture of the testbed through a Penetration Testing process by performing several types of flooding attacks. Based on the findings, a security solution was designed to improve the resilience of the testbed to effectively counter DDoS/flooding attacks, utilizing the capabilities of eBPF XDP. This internship plan is part of the POWER project, to be developed at the Centre for Informatics and Systems of the University of Coimbra, which it intends to support in a structurally, transversal and complete manner the evolution of the current state of Altice Labs’ portfolio of products and services, towards an integrated offer concept, which will enable new approaches to the market, fully aligned with four strong technological transformation vectors: 5G networks, continuum Edge/Cloud computing, AI&datadriven technologies and business models. This internship plan is part of a research effort focused on the development and evolution of products and services in an operator network environment.