5G Network Visibility:Why CSPs Need Visibility across AllDomains, Technologies, and Vendors

In the world of network engineering and operations, network visibility is a much soughtafter yet hard-to-define goal. Generally speaking, communications service providers (CSPs) want more of it, provided that the monitoring activity itself does not put an excessive load on the network or become cost-prohibitive due to the number of probes or the amount of storage required. With the introduction of 5G, operators are looking for greater levels of visibility to help them manage increased complexity, new interfaces, and the separation of control and user plane (CUPS). Operators’ experience with 3G and 4G network technology will only get them so far; 5G introduces new challenges.

Spotlight

Askey

BroadBand Communication Design & Manufacturing Service including Unified Communication Devices, VoIP Phone, Video Phone, H.264 IP Camera, xDSL, xPON, Cable Modem, Wireless, STB, PDT (Personal Data Teminal), DLAM (Central Office Equipment)

OTHER ARTICLES
Data Center Networking

SA and NSA: The Difference Between 5G Architectures

Article | July 5, 2023

Choosing the right 5G architecture is crucial for enhancing operations while keeping scalability and budget in mind. Learn whether SA or NSA is more suitable for your business needs with this article. 1. Introduction to 5G Network Architectures 2. What is 5G SA? 2.1 Characteristics of SA Architecture 2.2 Benefits of SA Architecture 3. What is 5G NSA? 3.1 Characteristics of NSA Architecture 3.2 Benefits of NSA Architecture 4. Factors to Consider When Choosing Between SA and NSA 4.1 Cost Implications of Each Architecture 4.2 Future Implications of Each Architecture 5. Conclusion 1. Introduction to 5G Network Architectures Widespread implementation of 5G is transforming how businesses across verticals operate, providing enhanced speed, low latency, and massive connectivity. The advancements in 5G system architecture enable new use cases, from autonomous vehicles to smart cities. There are currently two types of 5G network architecture, namely 5G standalone (5G SA) and 5G non-standalone (5G NSA). These two architectures differ in how they connect to the existing 4G infrastructure, the type of equipment required, and the level of network independence. Therefore, understanding the difference between SA and NSA is crucial for companies and organizations implementing 5G architecture. 2. What is 5G SA? 5G SA architecture is an entirely new technology that uses 5G core network architecture, independent of the current 4G LTE network. It has various use cases, such as combining 5G with AI and edge use cases. 2.1 Characteristics of SA Architecture Independent Network: All components of the architecture, including the 5G core architecture, radio access network, and user equipment, are not reliant on any 4G technology. High Performance: 5G SA architecture is optimized for high performance and low latency, enabling fast data transfer rates and near-instantaneous response times. Distributed Architecture: This allows efficient resource allocation and dynamic management of network resources. End-to-End Encryption: It provides end-to-end encryption, which ensures that data is secure and protected from unauthorized access. Higher Cost: 5G SA architecture is more expensive to implement than NSA architecture due to the need for a fully independent 5G network infrastructure. 2.2 Benefits of SA Architecture Low Latency: Applications of 5G that require real-time processing are only possible with SA architecture. Customization: As SA does not depend on existing network architecture, it can be tailored to company requirements. It also enables network slicing for 5G enterprise private network use cases. Security: End-to-end encryptions ensure a more secure network, and 5G network slicing keeps various access levels separate. Scalability: 5G architecture is designed to be highly scalable and handle large volumes of data and devices. Future-proofing: SA architecture will be able to support upcoming 5G features and capabilities by design. 3. What is 5G NSA? 5G NSA provides a transition into 'true' 5G architecture by incorporating 4G network infrastructure for deployment. 3.1 Characteristics of NSA Architecture Non-Independent Network: 5G NSA architecture is designed to leverage the existing 4G infrastructure to deliver 5G services. Transition to SA: NSA offers lower latencies and faster speeds than 4G LTE without deploying 5G architecture. Integrated Deployment: 5G NSA can be deployed quickly since it integrates existing infrastructure. Limited Scalability: As it relies on the existing 4G infrastructure, NSA is limited in scaling. Low Scalability: There is a lower limit on how many devices can join the network and the data volume that can be processed on NSA. 3.2 Benefits of NSA Architecture Faster Deployment: 5G NSA architecture can be deployed more rapidly than SA architecture. Easier Integration: 4G integration with existing networks is easier since it uses architecture. Cost-effective: 5G NSA architecture is generally less expensive to implement as it doesn't require a complete overhaul of the existing infrastructure to a 5G core architecture. Improvement Over 4G: While not providing the speed and low latency of 'true' 5G, NSA offers significant improvements over 4G networks. 4. Factors to Consider When Choosing Between SA and NSA 4.1 Cost Implications of Each Architecture SA architecture requires a complete overhaul of the existing infrastructure, which can result in higher infrastructure and deployment costs. However, SA architecture can be more cost-effective in the long run due to its future-proof design and ability to provide greater scalability and customization. On the other hand, NSA architecture leverages the existing 4G infrastructure, resulting in lower infrastructure and deployment costs. However, upgrading and maintaining an existing 4G network to support 5G technology can be complex and may result in higher operational costs in the long run. 4.2 Future Implications of Each Architecture SA architecture is designed to be future-proof and scalable, supporting upcoming 5G features and capabilities. This can give organizations greater flexibility and agility to respond to changing business needs and emerging technologies. On the other hand, NSA architecture may be less future-proof and require additional investments in infrastructure and resources to support new 5G features and capabilities. 5. Conclusion While NSA architecture may offer lower upfront costs and a faster deployment timeline, SA architecture may be more future-proof and scalable in the long run. Choosing the appropriate 5G architecture is a critical determinant for organizations aiming to utilize 5G technology in building a connected industry of the future. Organizations must evaluate their requirements and consider each architecture's short and long-term costs and operational implications before making a decision.

Read More
Enterprise Mobility, Mobile Infrastructure

5 Technology Trends That Will Advance Networking

Article | June 16, 2023

With the emergence of new technologies, the networking field is transforming rapidly. The epicenter of networking has shifted to clouds from datacenters. Similarly, the focus of networking has also moved towards mobile devices. In the upcoming years, tech trends will hugely impact the way a business operates and bring the rise of Industry 4.0. Top Networking Tech Trends 1. 5G and WI-FI 6 Undoubtedly, the deployment of next-generation wireless networking will be around the corner. In the arena of mobile devices, 5G is set to rewrite the new technological possibilities. It will uncover the true power of augmented reality and IoT. On the other hand, the next journey of the WI-FI Standard - WI-FI 6 or 802.11ax will become the step for a non-stop innovative world. It will add density, flexibility, scalability, and efficiency for increasing the internet speed of multiple connected devices. That will in return improve the working capabilities of businesses. 2. SD-WAN As the name suggested, SD-WAN is the software-defined approach for managing WANs. It can lower operating costs while amplifying the usage of resources in multiple deployments. It increases the security level for applications and enables admin to use bandwidth efficiently. It will become the standard format for wide area networks and will help in connecting public cloud resources and branch offices. 3. Secure Access Service Edge (SASE) SASE is a new networking technology that converges functions of different security and network solutions into one global cloud service. It is an architectural alteration of networking and security that supports IT to offer prompt, holistic, and versatile service to the digital business. It amplifies the security postures, improves access performance, and diminishes operational complexity. It helps organizations to develop new products faster and respond to business needs or changes. 4. IoT/Edge Networking In comparison to traditional cloud computing, edge computing is the idea to bring data and computers much closer to the end-users. It reduces the need for long-distance communication among client and server, and lessen the cost of bandwidth. It will remain to achieve drift in companies while they decentralize their networks. 5. Automation in Networking Network automation is the process that automates security and network to maximize the functionality and efficiency of the network. It will help IT companies to deploy applications faster. It is set to take the digital transformation to the next step by automation of network and security operations. It reduces the risk of downtime and failure of the network while making the management faster, simpler, and easier. Connecting to Future Networking Based on the trends that will reshape the networking world, we are going to see a significant change in the tech landscape. 2021 will be transformative for every person around the world. Several long-held concepts and infrastructure will be replaced by new ones making the network a vital asset to the business. Besides, the organizations are ready to take advantage of them in a way that was never imagined before. For any question or concern, have an IT consultation from the experienced.

Read More
Network Management, Network Security

Protection Vs. Privacy: Challenges of Mobile Device Management

Article | July 17, 2023

Digital liberation has opened up several avenues for businesses. The current scenario is a bright example of how a remote or hybrid work model seamlessly became a norm, establishing digital workspaces, including laptops and PCs. But this has also led companies to deal with a lot of challenges in managing their enterprise mobility. Whether it is the security or Bring Your Own Device (BYOD) to the user experience or migration, Mobile Device Management (MDM) plays a significant role in digital transformation. PROTECTION VS. PRIVACY: THE PROBLEM WITH (MDM) – INTRODUCTION Mobile device management pertains to software solutions and reliable practices that enable companies to easily manage and obtain wide-ranging mobile devices in compliance with corporate guidelines. In addition, the MDM functionality addresses the security of devices and data, management of devices, and configurations. Essentially, MDM as security is an element of an enterprise mobility management solution that integrates a clustered set of tools to secure and manage mobile apps, BYOD devices, content data and access, configurations, risk management, software updates, and application management. MDM allows a single-interface control over all connecting devices, enabling each device registered for corporate use through the MDM software to be easily monitored, managed, and controlled as per organizational policies. “It’s clear that our network is better protected. We have solved our BYOD issues and can rely on great support via e-mail, phone, or Skype.” - Raymond Bernaert, IT Administrator at ROC Kop van Noord, the Netherlands However, when it comes to an understanding, this technology is of utmost importance to consider the key challenges that companies face regarding protection vs. privacy of mobile device management. Key Challenges MDM solutions are built to improve visibility and secure better control into an end user’s mobile device activity. However, unrestrained tracking of the device’s activities poses a huge threat to the end user’s privacy. For instance, the mobile device management solution may track real-time location and browsing detail. The information exposes employees’ data and usage habits beyond the employer’s device management and security needs. Moreover, as the mobile device market expands, employees choose devices from various brands and platforms, which companies extend support and manage; nevertheless, unanticipated security issues with a specific platform and software version could emerge at any point. Thus, executing the entire process without compromising the end-user convenience. Now, let’s check out some of the most common mobile device management challenges. Security Using numerous devices and endpoints could potentially increase the risk of hacking. This is because, for hackers, it would be a lot easier to exploit the endpoints. And, no wonder mobile device security is one of the fastest-growing concepts in the cybersecurity landscape today. Incorporating mobile devices under the umbrella of mobile device management would be helpful to bridge the vulnerable gaps and prove to firmly manage the entire digital fleet, including mobile phones and PCs. In addition, this will increase up-time significantly and containerize the personal data from corporate data. The Privacy Issue Though MDM solution helps organizations obviate data breaches, they also open up doubt and questions regarding employee privacy. This is because various MDM tools allow employers to monitor the entire device’s activities, including personal phone calls and web activity, at any point. Subsequently, this empowers the IT team to command control in corporate security, whereby they perform many such remote actions, which harm the employees’ privacy. Organizations over the years have used mobile device management solutions with the intent to put BYOD in place. When an enterprise enables BYOD, employees use their devices to access data to help achieve the tasks. With the intent to secure the endpoints, companies choose MDM as their key solution and take control over the entire mobile device, but with that comes the potential for abuse. So, naturally, there is an unwillingness among employees to get MDM installed on their devices. Network Access Control (NAC) The sudden surge in digital workspace culture has also brought in additional complications with varied mobile devices. It is crucial to ensure the team has access to all the apps and corporate data they need. However, it is also important to note that there should be a check on direct access to the data center. One of the core elements for enterprise mobility is network access control (NAC). NAC scrutinizes devices wanting to access your network and it carefully enables and disables native device capabilities distinctly. With designated devices getting connected to the network as per resource, role, and location, it is relatively easy for NAC to ascertain their access level based upon the pre-configured concepts. User Experience It is essential to consider the end-user experience while managing mobility as it often becomes a big challenge. Therefore, a successful mobile device management structure lies mainly in creating a satisfying user experience. A company that uses various devices and has extensive BYOD users may find VMware Workspace ONE or MobileIron effective. However, if the enterprise is all Apple iPhones, the ideal enterprise mobility management would be Jamf Pro, an Apple-only EMM. A single sign would be a perfect method to get into the virtual desktop to ensure efficiency for the remote workers. Moreover, it won’t ask you to sign into different applications separately. Sturdy enterprise mobile device management is an absolute necessity to have a hassle-free experience. Let’s cite the example of this case study, where ‘The Department of Homeland Security (DHS) Science and Technology Directorate’ (S&T) initiated the Next Generation First Responder (NGFR) Apex program to assist tomorrow’s first responder in becoming protected, connected and aware. DHS S&T held a series of NGFR Integration Demonstrations to incrementally test and assess interoperable technologies presently at the development stage. These demonstrations have changed from tabletop integration to field exercises with partner public safety agencies incorporating increasingly complex technology. The NGFR- Harris County OpEx included 23 varied DHS and industry-provided technologies involving six Internet of Things (IoT) sensors, five situational awareness applications and platforms and live-stream video feeds. Additionally, Opex technologies also integrated body-worn cameras and real-time data aggregation and access across numerous agencies. In a nutshell, this case study identifies and explains the mobile device management (MDM) solutions that provided an application-level cybersecurity evaluation and remote device management. The Opex addresses how nationwide public safety agencies could utilize MDM to enhance the operational deployment of new devices and applications. Final Words There are surely both pros and cons involved in mobile device management. Over the years, the BYOD program has turned out to become a norm in corporate culture. In addition, the use of personal devices has significantly surged due to the gradual increase in remote and hybrid work models. Thus, many believe that the MDM solution is naturally aligned with BYOD. However, the fact is, a perfectly planned BYOD policy is the only way to ensure clarity. Having no policy in place will expose a firm to the so-called ‘Shadow IT’ as users will circumvent the IT infrastructure working from their mobile devices. Though the breach of privacy is likely, the policy can be tailored based on the company’s needs. The IT security is adequately maintained and protected and strikes a balance between protections vs. privacy in mobile device management. Frequently Asked Questions What can mobile device management do? Mobile device management keeps business data safe and protected and secures control over confidential information. MDM also exercises its power to lock and remove all data. This is the capability that sustains the device’s security. What are different mobile management tools? With the introduction of Bring Your Own Device (BYOD), several enterprise mobility management tools have also been inducted into MDM. To name a few, some of the prominent MDM tools are Miradore, Citrix Endpoint Management, and SOTI Mobicontrol. { "@context": "https://schema.org", "@type": "FAQPage", "mainEntity": [{ "@type": "Question", "name": "What can mobile device management do?", "acceptedAnswer": { "@type": "Answer", "text": "Mobile device management keeps business data safe and protected and secures control over confidential information. MDM also exercises its power to lock and remove all data. This is the capability that sustains the device’s security." } },{ "@type": "Question", "name": "What are different mobile management tools?", "acceptedAnswer": { "@type": "Answer", "text": "With the introduction of Bring Your Own Device (BYOD), several enterprise mobility management tools have also been inducted into MDM. To name a few, some of the prominent MDM tools are Miradore, Citrix Endpoint Management, and SOTI Mobicontrol." } }] }

Read More
5G

Edge use cases need a 5G and beyond user plane

Article | June 9, 2022

Emerging virtual and hybrid private 5G solutions are enabling communication service providers (CSPs) to address a large number of new consumer and enterprise edge use cases. Each of these edge use cases will require a specific network deployment model and edge user plane connectivity. That’s why we’ve designed our 5G edge user plane to tackle five distinct key capabilities: support of flexible network deployments, 3GPP dual-mode support, integrated Gi LAN services, integrated probing with edge analytics and edge exposure enablement. Let’s dive into this blog post to learn how the powerful 5G edge user plane is unlocking new 5G edge use cases. How technological innovation creates value and benefits society has always interested me, influencing my work as a mobile network technologist and sales professional. Since mobile data was introduced in late 90s, both mobile network technology and mobile consumer use cases have evolved enormously. Indeed, a rapid increase in connectivity speed and the introduction of smartphones have pushed the market to adopt mobile web and video and create thousands of new applications. However, sometimes ‘killer use cases’ require both business case and application ecosystem maturity. One example is video conferencing, one of the key services 3G was designed for but was only introduced when the over-the-top (OTT) vendors disrupted the content provider market and popularized social media. Creation of mobile technology has indeed its own innovation cycles and research feeds and therefore can't depend on market pull, but you can draw the conclusion that the time to value greatly benefits when the broad business and technology ecosystem in the value chain collaborate and co-create solutions. Precisely, what’s really exciting about 5G is that it coincides with the maturity of other two disruptive technology enablers for end applications: artificial intelligence (AI) and cloud edge computing. It also comes at a moment when there’s both an urgent need and huge financial support to digitalize society and industry. In fact, more than ever, we are witnessing a close collaboration between technology and business ecosystems. Over the past few years, there have been a large number of public-private consortiums to feed service requirements into 5G standards, explore and validate the value of 5G technology. For example, just to name few, the 5G alliance for connected Industries and automation (5G-ACIA) or European 5G infrastructure Public Private Partnership (PPP) projects. For years, 3GPP standards have been preparing to define advanced 5G connectivity solutions for edge computing and vertical digitalization use cases. In addition, all sorts of consumer and enterprise edge applications are being developed at the same pace in many areas such advanced video processing, AI analytics, immersive gaming, smart grid applications, automated guided vehicles (AGVs) controls or industry automation. The edge ecosystem is particularly complex and involves different players. One key pillar is the wireless connectivity service CSPs offer. 5G-ACIA introduced the concept of virtual private and hybrid private 5G solutions, two emerging solutions that CSPs are exploring to complement their private 5G network offerings. Such solutions allow CSPs to leverage their existing public networks and offer new services in an agile and cost-effective manner using new 5G capabilities such as network slicing. In order to address edge use cases, virtual and hybrid private 5G solutions need to bring the user plane connectivity to the edge by deploying 5G edge user plane functions. The 5G edge user plane supports flexible network deployments One key learning from industry experimentation with 5G is that each use case brings a unique combination of connectivity requirements, in terms of end-to-end performance (uplink and downlink latency, jitter, packet loss and throughput), data privacy and security, robustness, wide vs local area coverage and mobility. Latency and security requirements drive the selection of the edge location, which can be the enterprise premise, CSP access or regional data center or even the extended public edge such as content delivery networks (CDN) content provider or a hyper cloud provider’s (HCP) edge data center. For example, a mobile gaming application can be located in the CSP regional data center or HCP edge, whereas video processing and AI for a factory automation application is located on the factory premise. Also edge distribution can be accounted by CSP for those use cases which produce significant amount of data such as fixed wireless access (FWA) to optimize backhaul costs. Ericsson has a vast experience supporting and driving the ecosystem to realize time critical communication use cases at scale and has conducted detailed latency analysis for different type of deployments. The RAN deployment needs to be carefully planned according to the specific use case performance characteristics. Some use cases can be achieved with existing macro RAN environment -4G or non-standalone 5G-, with macro RAN standalone 5G with or without dedicated quality of service (QoS) profiles or even may require network slicing to partition macro RAN. In contrast, some other use cases will need dedicated RAN deployments. In addition, most use cases will benefit from a dedicated edge user plane function, as it provides a higher level of performance and robustness. In summary, the concrete edge use cases to be offered and CSP’s own solution preferences drive the type of network solution and deployment, which can be a private 5G network, a virtual or a hybrid 5G private network using existing macro or dedicated RAN, with or without network slicing. The edge 5G user plane function should allow for such deployment flexibility and enable the different edge use cases characteristics. Ericsson Local Packet Gateway (LPG) addresses this by: Supporting any access technology, radio deployment model and RAN vendor Seamlessly integrating with Ericsson’s existing dual-mode 5G Core. which is prepared for slicing, efficient routing to edge (also called edge breakout) and advanced QOS and many other 5G edge features described in more detail in next section. Supporting a fast time to service, deployment simplicity and a very low footprint enabling deployment at scale in any type of edge location, up to on enterprise premises. See our previous LPG 5G edge user plane: key requirements for success for details. Providing a high level of robustness and failure resilience by means of a cloud native user plane application designed for high availability and fault resilience, support of geo-redundancy and support of 3GPP control plane and user plane split (CUPS) interface which can be deployed in full mesh with multiple control planes. User plane can also be deployed as a dedicated function within a slice to secure further characteristics and isolation or as a shared function for various slices. 5G edge user plane should enable transition from 4G to more sophisticated 5G connectivity Most of CSPs are embracing edge opportunities. They are viewing the opportunities as an evolution of their existing offerings rather than a revolution, meaning existing 4G enterprise use cases will still need to be supported for some time as the ecosystem matures to support time-critical communications type of use cases. This means 5G edge user plane should be dual-mode and support such a wide breadth of technology. 5G edge user plane should support both 3GPP compliant serving/packet gateway user function (S/PGW-U) and user plane function (UPF) and evolve with advanced UPF features for time-critical communications, such as more stringent end to end QoS and transmission robustness for ultra-reliable low latency communications (URLLC) or Ethernet connectivity for advanced edge industrial use cases. It should also support 5G peak rates and do not degrade use cases performance characteristics. It should also support dynamic edge routing solutions which are efficient, deployable by multipurpose terminals and mobility proof such as dynamic network slice selection which is preferrable to UPF as uplink classifier as starting solution until standardization evolves. 5G edge user plane should work in conjunction with the CSP’s dual-mode core system, which supports dynamic slicing orchestration, dynamic slice selection, ultra-reliable low latency communications and advanced 5G edge connectivity features such as different service continuity and user plane re-anchoring modes depending on mobility and application resilience needs. Ericsson’s dual-mode 5G Core with Local Packet Gateway provides such advanced 5G connectivity in a pre-verified manner. In fact, the Ericsson Local Packet Gateway Cloud Native Function (CNF) is based on the same software as the Ericsson Packet Core Gateway (PCG), the market leading cloud-native user plane, which is deployed in 5G live networks today. Such deployment flexibility in edge user plane allows CSP to offer distinct use cases. For example, CSPs can offer mobile gaming service by deploying a cloud virtual reality (VR) gaming center application in their regional data centers. Connectivity with guaranteed low latency QoS can be provided by a dedicated 5G network slice with the dedicated Ericsson Local Packet Gateway, deployed close to the gaming application and connected to the CSP’s existing central core network. The mobile gaming application can use a portable device such as VR glasses or use a multi-purpose smartphone or tablet that supports dynamic slice selection. CSP can reuse their existing public network and macro 5G RAN. As another example, CSP can offer 5G edge connectivity to factories or logistic centers for augmented reality (AR) quality inspection. The AR application is deployed on the factory premise and needs an ultra-reliable and low-latency QoS connection to process in real time all the factory images. This is provided by a dedicated Ericsson Local Packet Gateway with ultra-reliable low latency QoS and redundant configuration being deployed on premises. Edge use cases will require user plane services beyond 3GPP There is a set of non-standardized user plane functions deployed in today’s networks (also called GI/N6 LAN functions) for mobile broadband service that would be also relevant for edge use cases. These functions can be categorized as: Traffic acceleration and optimization of access resources e.g., transport layer optimizers or advanced video traffic shapers Network services e.g., carrier grade NAT devices or external load balancers Service aware traffic monitoring and enforcements needed to realize customized CSP charging data plans or comply with some country regulatory such as content filters Network security functions protecting CSP infrastructure and UEs of security attacks such as subscriber firewalls or distributed denial (DDoS) mitigation systems, and Service chain policers and forwarders to chain and offload these GI/N6 LAN functions. Those can be integrated with operator policy framework to compose and program a unique data pipeline which addresses the specific connectivity needs of a given subscriber and application in the context of a certain use case The current GI/N6 LAN market is very fragmented and addressed by many different vendor specific user plane functions. These functions are deployed as separate appliances or virtualized functions, each with their management system, policy integration and cloud orchestration system which significantly increases CSP’s total cost of ownership (TCO) when deploying and managing them. As CSPs start their edge journey they will need to bring some of these GI/N6 functions to the edge. A very simple and cost-efficient strategy to consolidate these functions in one single edge user plane function. This approach is being adopted by Ericsson Local Packet Gateway: it integrates these functions, including advanced integrated Packet Core Firewall, together with the UPF/S/PGW-U functions. This dramatically reduces the TCO and provides a single hop to the end application, which reduces further the latency. Ericsson Local Packet Gateway also allows to compose and tune the set user plane functions applied to a given traffic in one configuration click, which allows to customize the connectivity for each edge use case. Another consideration is that these GI/N6 functions were designed for legacy mobile broadband. This means they will need to evolve to support 5G peak user throughput rates and new 5G segment requirements, e.g., traffic optimizations should focus on optimizing the throughput of uplink transmissions and reducing the overall jitter and latency. Service aware charging models will evolve as 5G gets monetized, security for edge enterprise connectivity will keep evolving as well. Technological innovation in this space is a must for any edge user plane vendor and should be holistic considering the entire ecosystem and end-to-end solution behavior. As one example, edge user plane can leverage 3GPP exposure interfaces for application detection, use collaborative solutions with content providers or RAN to optimize traffic delivery or even adapt traffic optimizations to new end to end rate adaptation mechanisms such as low latency low loss scalable throughput (L4S). Ericsson, as an end-to-end network provider and key contributor to 5G standardization, is working actively in this space. Edge connectivity needs to be monitored and assured CSPs need to monitor, troubleshoot, and assure the edge user plane connectivity. In many cases the CSP organizations dealing with enterprises services have their own analytic and management systems. Those systems need to evolve to provide visibility of the 5G encrypted communication, up to on enterprise premise and without compromising 5G security and provide advanced insights to meet the stringent service level agreements of edge use cases. Example of user plane data feeds are traffic packet and patterns statistics, key performance indicators at transport level or service quality of experience estimates per application, area of interest, slice and subscriber type. CSP analytic use cases will also evolve, meaning network assurance and service experience management use cases will increasingly adopt AI/ML models with distinct and very demanding UP data sets running in parallel. External probing solutions were not designed for these requirements. The cost of evolving and deploying such solutions to thousands of edges is unaffordable. Ericsson Local Packet Gateway addresses this challenge by supporting integrated dual-mode probing capabilities which includes rich, granular data with pre-processed data and advanced data collection profiles avoiding the need of deploying external taps, packet broker and probes at edge. Software probes are a unique Ericsson dual mode 5G Core feature – a feature that’s very popular with our customers for public network and enterprise solutions. CSP will also introduce network data analytics function (NWDAF) function to enable 5G analytics for further 5G automation, new exposure APIs for verticals and data efficiency. An NWDAF can collect edge user plane and public network data to provide real time analytics which can be consumed by the network functions or by the end edge application to improve further the edge connectivity. Example of those analytics are user mobility, network congestion, quality of service, service experience or abnormal user behavior. Ideally, the NWDAF should be distributed at the edge and deployed co-located to the edge user plane for data efficiency, security and lower actuation latency. Ericsson NWDAF supports such distributed and co-located deployment and analytics and can collect pre-standard data from the Local Packet Gateway data until 3GPP rel-18 specifies UPF event exposure. Edge exposure for advanced edge connectivity Exposure through APIs on the edge is becoming increasingly important for CSPs to enable new services, increase their relevance in the 5G ecosystem and become more attractive partners for hyperscale cloud providers, application ecosystems and other players. Edge applications will be able to consume network capabilities and data to provide advanced services and innovate. Data extracted from edge user plane function will be of high value. For example, to determine the exact UE sessions being anchored by a given edge user plane, the actual monitored QoS, etc. Such exposure capabilities in edge user plane allows application to adapt the content delivery or reconfigure dynamically the connectivity, e.g., change dynamically the negotiated QoS or influence edge routing. As mentioned previously, NWDAF user plane analytics can be also exposed for advanced edge use cases. Ericsson is already working with our customers to create new edge use cases using Ericsson Local Packet Gateway and Edge Exposure Server. Stay tuned! Summary: In this blog post we’ve explained the different considerations that need to be taken into account when selecting the 5G edge user plane, and how it enables flexible virtual private and hybrid 4G private solution deployments and address the user experience idiosyncrasy of myriads of edge use cases. The 5G edge user plane has to be small, cost efficient, easy to deploy but still extremely powerful and advanced in terms of dual connectivity and added value features. Ericsson Local Packet Gateway is designed with all these capabilities in mind and integrates seamlessly with existing CSP dual-mode 5G Core, delivering edge use cases was never that easy.

Read More

Spotlight

Askey

BroadBand Communication Design & Manufacturing Service including Unified Communication Devices, VoIP Phone, Video Phone, H.264 IP Camera, xDSL, xPON, Cable Modem, Wireless, STB, PDT (Personal Data Teminal), DLAM (Central Office Equipment)

Related News

Network Security

Ampliphae, HPE Athonet and Arqit deliver Quantum-Safe Private 5G using Symmetric Key Agreement

PR Newswire | January 19, 2024

Arqit Quantum Inc, a leader in quantum-safe encryption, and Ampliphae Ltd (Ampliphae), a leader in network cyber security solutions, have today announced successful completion of a project that will deliver enhanced quantum-safe security for Private 5G networks. The Security Enhanced Virtualised Networking for 5G (SEViN-5G) project, funded by Innovate UK, the UK Government’s innovation agency, leveraged Ampliphae’s network security analytics technology and Arqit’s Symmetric Key Agreement Platform to deliver a quantum-secure Private 5G testbed that can protect against both current and future cyber threats. Athonet, a Hewlett Packard Enterprise acquisition, provided the Radio Access Network (RAN) equipment for the project with a cloud core hosted on AWS. Private enterprise networks based on 5G cellular technology are accelerating digital transformation across industries including manufacturing, healthcare, defence and smart cities. Private 5G gives enterprises access to high-speed, massively scalable, and ultra-reliable wireless connectivity, allowing them to implement innovative IoT and mobile solutions that enhance productivity, drive automation and improve customer engagement. The security of these networks will be paramount as they will support safety-critical infrastructure and carry highly sensitive data. But like any new technology, 5G comes with potential new threats and security risks including the threat from quantum computing. The project finished in December 2023 and customer engagement has already begun. David Williams, Arqit Founder, Chairman and CEO said: “Enterprises want to deploy Private 5G networks with complete confidence that they will be safe from both current and future cyber threats including from quantum computers. Working alongside Ampliphae, we have shown that a quantum-safe Private 5G network is deliverable using Arqit’s unique encryption technology.” Trevor Graham, Ampliphae CEO said: “Private 5G can be hosted partly or completely in the Cloud, giving enterprises the opportunity to rapidly set up their own cellular networks customised to support their operations. With Ampliphae and Arqit they can now be certain that those Private 5G networks are monitored and secure against eavesdropping and disruption.” Nanda Menon, Senior Advisor Hewlett Packard Enterprise said: “In an era where security is paramount, the completion of the SEViN-5G project is a significant milestone. The delivery of a quantum-secure Private 5G testbed, achieved where Athonet have combined the Athonet core with CableFree radios, underscores the commitment to innovation and reinforces the confidence enterprises can have in deploying networks that are both cutting-edge and secure from both present and future threats.” About Arqit Arqit Quantum Inc. (Nasdaq: ARQQ, ARQQW) (Arqit) supplies a unique encryption Platform as a Service which makes the communications links of any networked device, cloud machine or data at rest secure against both current and future forms of attack on encryption – even from a quantum computer. Compliant with NSA standards, Arqit’s Symmetric Key Agreement Platform delivers a lightweight software agent that allows devices to create encryption keys locally in partnership with any number of other devices. The keys are computationally secure and operate over zero trust networks. It can create limitless volumes of keys with any group size and refresh rate and can regulate the secure entrance and exit of a device in a group. The agent is lightweight and will thus run on the smallest of end point devices. The Product sits within a growing portfolio of granted patents. It also works in a standards compliant manner which does not oblige customers to make a disruptive rip and replace of their technology. Recognised for groundbreaking innovation at the Institution of Engineering and Technology awards in 2023, Arqit has also won the Innovation in Cyber Award at the National Cyber Awards and Cyber Security Software Company of the Year Award at the Cyber Security Awards. Arqit is ISO 27001 Standard certified. www.arqit.uk About Ampliphae Ampliphae’s distributed network analytics technology provides insight into how networks are used to support enterprise operations at every level. A graduate of the prestigious LORCA cyber accelerator in London, and the AWS European Defence Accelerator, Ampliphae’s technology is already used by enterprises across multiple verticals to discover, analyse and secure the network traffic that supports their key applications and business processes. Ampliphae’s Encryption Intelligence product operates at enterprise scale to discover devices and applications that use cryptography, analysing their encryption capabilities to detect risks, including assets that are vulnerable to future quantum computer attack. Using Encryption Intelligence, the organisation can gather effective operational intelligence about their encryption landscape, both within and outside the organisation, and build an effective mitigation program to address current and future vulnerabilities.

Read More

Network Security

Cato Networks Introduces World's First SASE-based XDR

PR Newswire | January 25, 2024

Cato Networks, the leader in SASE, announced the expansion of the Cato SASE Cloud platform into threat detection and incident response with Cato XDR, the world's first SASE-based, extended detection and response (XDR) solution. Available immediately, Cato XDR utilizes the functional and operational capabilities of the Cato SASE Cloud to overcome the protracted deployment times, limited data quality, and inadequate investigation and response experience too often associated with legacy XDR solutions. Cato also introduced Cato EPP, the first SASE-managed endpoint protection platform (EPP/EDR). Together, Cato XDR and Cato EPP mark the first expansion beyond the original SASE scope pioneered by Cato in 2016 and defined by industry analysts in 2019. SASE's security capabilities encompassed threat prevention and data protection in a common, easy-to-manage, and easy-to-adopt global platform. With today's announcement, Cato is expanding SASE into threat detection, incident response, and endpoint protection without compromising on the architectural elegance captured by the original SASE definition. "Cato SASE continues to be the antidote to security complexity," says Shlomo Kramer, CEO and co-founder of Cato Networks. "Today, we extend our one-of-a-kind SASE platform beyond threat prevention and into threat detection and response. Only Cato and our simple, automated, and elegant platform can streamline security this way." An early adopter of Cato XDR is Redner's Markets, an employee-owned supermarket chain headquartered in Reading, Pennsylvania, with 75 locations. Redner's Markets' vice president of IT and Infrastructure, Nick Hidalgo, said, "The Cato platform gave us better visibility, saved time on incident response, resolved application issues, and improved network performance ten-fold." (Read more about Redner's Markets and Cato in this blog. "The convergence of XDR and EPP into SASE is not just another product; it's a game-changer for the industry," said Art Nichols, CTO of Windstream Enterprise, a Cato partner. "The innovative integration of these capabilities brings together advanced threat detection, response capabilities, and endpoint security within a unified, cloud-native architecture—revolutionizing the way enterprises protect their networks and data against increasingly sophisticated cyber threats." (Read more about what Cato partners are saying about today's news in this blog.) Platform vs. Product: The Difference Matters Cato XDR takes full advantage of the enormous benefits of the Cato SASE Cloud platform, the first platform built from the ground up to enable enterprises to connect, secure, and manage sites, users, and cloud resources anywhere in the world. Unlike disjointed point solutions and security appliances, Cato capabilities are instantly on, always available at scale, and fully converged, giving IT teams a single, shared context worldwide to understand their networks, prevent threats, and resolve problems. As an autonomous platform, Cato SASE Cloud sustains its evolution, resiliency, optimal performance, and security posture, saving enterprises the operational overhead of maintaining enterprise infrastructure. Enterprises simply subscribe to Cato to meet their business needs. Cato's cloud-native model revolutionized security and networking operations when it was introduced in 2016, a fact validated three years later in 2019 when the Cato approach was formally recognized by the industry as SASE. Breach Times Still Too Long; Limitations of Legacy XDR Cato is again revolutionizing cybersecurity with the first SASE platform to expand into threat detection, empowering security teams to become smarter and remediate incidents faster. The flood of security alerts triggered by network sensors, such as firewalls and IPS, complicates threat identification. In 2023, enterprises required 204 days on average to identify breaches.1 XDR tools help security analysts close this gap by ingesting, correlating, and contextualizing threat intelligence information with the data from native and third-party sensors. However, legacy XDR tools suffer from numerous problems relating to data quality. Sensor deployment extends the time-to-value as IT must not only install the sensors but also develop a baseline of specific organizational activity for accurate assessments. Data quality is also compromised when importing and normalizing third-party sensor data, complicating threat identification and incident response. Security analysts waste time sorting through incident stories to identify the ones most critical for immediate remediation. Once determined, incident remediation is often hampered by missing information, requiring analysts to master and switch between disparate tools. No wonder in 2023, average breach containment required more than two months.1 Cato XDR and Cato EPP Expands the Meaning of SASE Cato XDR addresses legacy XDR's limitations. Instantly activated globally, Cato XDR provides enterprises with immediate insights into threats on their networks. Incident detection is accurate due to Cato's many native sensors – NGFW, advanced threat prevention (IPS, NGAM, and DNS Security), SWG, CASB, DLP, ZTNA, RBI, and now EPP/EDR. Powered by Bitdefender's world-leading malware prevention technology, Cato EPP protects endpoints from attack – in the Cato way. Endpoint threat and user data are stored in the same converged Cato data lake as the rest of the customer's network data, simplifying cross-domain event correlation. The result is incredibly high-quality data that improves the incident identification and remediation process. Cato AI uses the data to accurately identify and rank incidents, empowering analysts to focus critical resources on an organization's most important remediation cases. Cato AI is battle-tested and proven across years of threat hunting and remediation handling by Cato MDR service agents. Remediation times reduce as detected incident stories contain the relevant information for in-depth investigation. Cato's tools sit in the same console as the native engines, enabling security analysts to view everything in one place -- the current security policy and the reviewed story. Finally, incident reporting is simplified with generative AI. Purpose-built for investigations, this natural language engine provides human-readable explanations of incident stories. Analysts save time sharing incident information with other teams and reporting to their managers.

Read More

Network Infrastructure

DISH Wireless Awarded $50 Million NTIA Grant for 5G Open RAN Integration and Deployment Center

PR Newswire | January 16, 2024

DISH Wireless, a subsidiary of EchoStar, was awarded a historic $50 million grant from the U.S. Department of Commerce's National Telecommunications and Information Administration (NTIA) to establish the Open RAN Center for Integration & Deployment (ORCID). ORCID will allow participants to test and validate their hardware and software solutions (RU, DU and CU) against a complete commercial-grade Open RAN network deployed by DISH. "The Open RAN Center for Integration and Deployment (ORCID) will serve a critical role in strengthening the global Open RAN ecosystem and building the next generation of wireless networks," said Charlie Ergen, co-founder and chairman, EchoStar. "By leveraging DISH's experience deploying the world's first standalone Open RAN 5G network, ORCID will be uniquely positioned to test and evaluate Open RAN interoperability, performance and security from domestic and international vendors. We appreciate NTIA's recognition of DISH and ORCID's role in driving Open RAN innovation and the Administration's ongoing commitment to U.S. leadership in wireless connectivity." To date, this grant represents NTIA's largest award under the Public Wireless Supply Chain Innovation Fund (Innovation Fund). ORCID will be housed in DISH's secure Cheyenne, Wyoming campus and will be supported by consortium partners Fujitsu, Mavenir and VMware by Broadcom and technology partners Analog Devices, ARM, Cisco, Dell Technologies, Intel, JMA Wireless, NVIDIA, Qualcomm and Samsung. NTIA Administrator Alan Davidson and Innovation Fund Director Amanda Toman will join EchoStar Co-Founder and Chairman Charlie Ergen, EchoStar CEO Hamid Akhavan, EVP and Chief Network Officer Marc Rouanne and other stakeholders to announce the grant and tour a DISH 5G Open RAN cell site later today in Las Vegas. During this event, DISH will outline ORCID's unique advantages, including that it will leverage DISH's experience as the only operator in the United States to commercially deploy a standalone Open RAN 5G network. DISH and its industry partners have validated Open RAN technology at scale across the country; today DISH's network covers over 246 million Americans nationwide. At ORCID, participants will be able to test and evaluate individual or multiple network elements to ensure Open RAN interoperability, performance and security, and contribute to the development, deployment and adoption of open and interoperable standards-based radio access networks. ORCID's "living laboratory" will drive the Open RAN ecosystem — from lab testing to commercial deployment. Below are highlights of ORCID: ORCID will combine both lab and field testing and evaluation activities. ORCID will be able to test elements brought by any qualified vendor against DISH's live, complete and commercial-grade Open RAN stack. ORCID will use DISH's spectrum holdings, a combination of low-, mid- and high-band frequencies, enabling field testing and evaluation. ORCID will evaluate Open RAN elements through mixing and matching with those of other vendors, rather than validating a single vendor's stack. DISH's experience in a multi-vendor environment will give ORCID unique insights about the integration of Open RAN into brownfield networks. ORCID's multi-tenant lab and field testing will occur in DISH's secure Cheyenne, Wyoming facility, which is already compliant with stringent security protocols in light of its satellite functions. About DISH Wireless DISH Wireless, a subsidiary of EchoStar Corporation (NASDAQ: SATS), is changing the way the world communicates with the Boost Wireless Network. In 2020, the company became a nationwide U.S. wireless carrier through the acquisition of Boost Mobile. The company continues to innovate in wireless, building the nation's first virtualized, Open RAN 5G broadband network, and is inclusive of the Boost Infinite, Boost Mobile and Gen Mobile wireless brands.

Read More

Network Security

Ampliphae, HPE Athonet and Arqit deliver Quantum-Safe Private 5G using Symmetric Key Agreement

PR Newswire | January 19, 2024

Arqit Quantum Inc, a leader in quantum-safe encryption, and Ampliphae Ltd (Ampliphae), a leader in network cyber security solutions, have today announced successful completion of a project that will deliver enhanced quantum-safe security for Private 5G networks. The Security Enhanced Virtualised Networking for 5G (SEViN-5G) project, funded by Innovate UK, the UK Government’s innovation agency, leveraged Ampliphae’s network security analytics technology and Arqit’s Symmetric Key Agreement Platform to deliver a quantum-secure Private 5G testbed that can protect against both current and future cyber threats. Athonet, a Hewlett Packard Enterprise acquisition, provided the Radio Access Network (RAN) equipment for the project with a cloud core hosted on AWS. Private enterprise networks based on 5G cellular technology are accelerating digital transformation across industries including manufacturing, healthcare, defence and smart cities. Private 5G gives enterprises access to high-speed, massively scalable, and ultra-reliable wireless connectivity, allowing them to implement innovative IoT and mobile solutions that enhance productivity, drive automation and improve customer engagement. The security of these networks will be paramount as they will support safety-critical infrastructure and carry highly sensitive data. But like any new technology, 5G comes with potential new threats and security risks including the threat from quantum computing. The project finished in December 2023 and customer engagement has already begun. David Williams, Arqit Founder, Chairman and CEO said: “Enterprises want to deploy Private 5G networks with complete confidence that they will be safe from both current and future cyber threats including from quantum computers. Working alongside Ampliphae, we have shown that a quantum-safe Private 5G network is deliverable using Arqit’s unique encryption technology.” Trevor Graham, Ampliphae CEO said: “Private 5G can be hosted partly or completely in the Cloud, giving enterprises the opportunity to rapidly set up their own cellular networks customised to support their operations. With Ampliphae and Arqit they can now be certain that those Private 5G networks are monitored and secure against eavesdropping and disruption.” Nanda Menon, Senior Advisor Hewlett Packard Enterprise said: “In an era where security is paramount, the completion of the SEViN-5G project is a significant milestone. The delivery of a quantum-secure Private 5G testbed, achieved where Athonet have combined the Athonet core with CableFree radios, underscores the commitment to innovation and reinforces the confidence enterprises can have in deploying networks that are both cutting-edge and secure from both present and future threats.” About Arqit Arqit Quantum Inc. (Nasdaq: ARQQ, ARQQW) (Arqit) supplies a unique encryption Platform as a Service which makes the communications links of any networked device, cloud machine or data at rest secure against both current and future forms of attack on encryption – even from a quantum computer. Compliant with NSA standards, Arqit’s Symmetric Key Agreement Platform delivers a lightweight software agent that allows devices to create encryption keys locally in partnership with any number of other devices. The keys are computationally secure and operate over zero trust networks. It can create limitless volumes of keys with any group size and refresh rate and can regulate the secure entrance and exit of a device in a group. The agent is lightweight and will thus run on the smallest of end point devices. The Product sits within a growing portfolio of granted patents. It also works in a standards compliant manner which does not oblige customers to make a disruptive rip and replace of their technology. Recognised for groundbreaking innovation at the Institution of Engineering and Technology awards in 2023, Arqit has also won the Innovation in Cyber Award at the National Cyber Awards and Cyber Security Software Company of the Year Award at the Cyber Security Awards. Arqit is ISO 27001 Standard certified. www.arqit.uk About Ampliphae Ampliphae’s distributed network analytics technology provides insight into how networks are used to support enterprise operations at every level. A graduate of the prestigious LORCA cyber accelerator in London, and the AWS European Defence Accelerator, Ampliphae’s technology is already used by enterprises across multiple verticals to discover, analyse and secure the network traffic that supports their key applications and business processes. Ampliphae’s Encryption Intelligence product operates at enterprise scale to discover devices and applications that use cryptography, analysing their encryption capabilities to detect risks, including assets that are vulnerable to future quantum computer attack. Using Encryption Intelligence, the organisation can gather effective operational intelligence about their encryption landscape, both within and outside the organisation, and build an effective mitigation program to address current and future vulnerabilities.

Read More

Network Security

Cato Networks Introduces World's First SASE-based XDR

PR Newswire | January 25, 2024

Cato Networks, the leader in SASE, announced the expansion of the Cato SASE Cloud platform into threat detection and incident response with Cato XDR, the world's first SASE-based, extended detection and response (XDR) solution. Available immediately, Cato XDR utilizes the functional and operational capabilities of the Cato SASE Cloud to overcome the protracted deployment times, limited data quality, and inadequate investigation and response experience too often associated with legacy XDR solutions. Cato also introduced Cato EPP, the first SASE-managed endpoint protection platform (EPP/EDR). Together, Cato XDR and Cato EPP mark the first expansion beyond the original SASE scope pioneered by Cato in 2016 and defined by industry analysts in 2019. SASE's security capabilities encompassed threat prevention and data protection in a common, easy-to-manage, and easy-to-adopt global platform. With today's announcement, Cato is expanding SASE into threat detection, incident response, and endpoint protection without compromising on the architectural elegance captured by the original SASE definition. "Cato SASE continues to be the antidote to security complexity," says Shlomo Kramer, CEO and co-founder of Cato Networks. "Today, we extend our one-of-a-kind SASE platform beyond threat prevention and into threat detection and response. Only Cato and our simple, automated, and elegant platform can streamline security this way." An early adopter of Cato XDR is Redner's Markets, an employee-owned supermarket chain headquartered in Reading, Pennsylvania, with 75 locations. Redner's Markets' vice president of IT and Infrastructure, Nick Hidalgo, said, "The Cato platform gave us better visibility, saved time on incident response, resolved application issues, and improved network performance ten-fold." (Read more about Redner's Markets and Cato in this blog. "The convergence of XDR and EPP into SASE is not just another product; it's a game-changer for the industry," said Art Nichols, CTO of Windstream Enterprise, a Cato partner. "The innovative integration of these capabilities brings together advanced threat detection, response capabilities, and endpoint security within a unified, cloud-native architecture—revolutionizing the way enterprises protect their networks and data against increasingly sophisticated cyber threats." (Read more about what Cato partners are saying about today's news in this blog.) Platform vs. Product: The Difference Matters Cato XDR takes full advantage of the enormous benefits of the Cato SASE Cloud platform, the first platform built from the ground up to enable enterprises to connect, secure, and manage sites, users, and cloud resources anywhere in the world. Unlike disjointed point solutions and security appliances, Cato capabilities are instantly on, always available at scale, and fully converged, giving IT teams a single, shared context worldwide to understand their networks, prevent threats, and resolve problems. As an autonomous platform, Cato SASE Cloud sustains its evolution, resiliency, optimal performance, and security posture, saving enterprises the operational overhead of maintaining enterprise infrastructure. Enterprises simply subscribe to Cato to meet their business needs. Cato's cloud-native model revolutionized security and networking operations when it was introduced in 2016, a fact validated three years later in 2019 when the Cato approach was formally recognized by the industry as SASE. Breach Times Still Too Long; Limitations of Legacy XDR Cato is again revolutionizing cybersecurity with the first SASE platform to expand into threat detection, empowering security teams to become smarter and remediate incidents faster. The flood of security alerts triggered by network sensors, such as firewalls and IPS, complicates threat identification. In 2023, enterprises required 204 days on average to identify breaches.1 XDR tools help security analysts close this gap by ingesting, correlating, and contextualizing threat intelligence information with the data from native and third-party sensors. However, legacy XDR tools suffer from numerous problems relating to data quality. Sensor deployment extends the time-to-value as IT must not only install the sensors but also develop a baseline of specific organizational activity for accurate assessments. Data quality is also compromised when importing and normalizing third-party sensor data, complicating threat identification and incident response. Security analysts waste time sorting through incident stories to identify the ones most critical for immediate remediation. Once determined, incident remediation is often hampered by missing information, requiring analysts to master and switch between disparate tools. No wonder in 2023, average breach containment required more than two months.1 Cato XDR and Cato EPP Expands the Meaning of SASE Cato XDR addresses legacy XDR's limitations. Instantly activated globally, Cato XDR provides enterprises with immediate insights into threats on their networks. Incident detection is accurate due to Cato's many native sensors – NGFW, advanced threat prevention (IPS, NGAM, and DNS Security), SWG, CASB, DLP, ZTNA, RBI, and now EPP/EDR. Powered by Bitdefender's world-leading malware prevention technology, Cato EPP protects endpoints from attack – in the Cato way. Endpoint threat and user data are stored in the same converged Cato data lake as the rest of the customer's network data, simplifying cross-domain event correlation. The result is incredibly high-quality data that improves the incident identification and remediation process. Cato AI uses the data to accurately identify and rank incidents, empowering analysts to focus critical resources on an organization's most important remediation cases. Cato AI is battle-tested and proven across years of threat hunting and remediation handling by Cato MDR service agents. Remediation times reduce as detected incident stories contain the relevant information for in-depth investigation. Cato's tools sit in the same console as the native engines, enabling security analysts to view everything in one place -- the current security policy and the reviewed story. Finally, incident reporting is simplified with generative AI. Purpose-built for investigations, this natural language engine provides human-readable explanations of incident stories. Analysts save time sharing incident information with other teams and reporting to their managers.

Read More

Network Infrastructure

DISH Wireless Awarded $50 Million NTIA Grant for 5G Open RAN Integration and Deployment Center

PR Newswire | January 16, 2024

DISH Wireless, a subsidiary of EchoStar, was awarded a historic $50 million grant from the U.S. Department of Commerce's National Telecommunications and Information Administration (NTIA) to establish the Open RAN Center for Integration & Deployment (ORCID). ORCID will allow participants to test and validate their hardware and software solutions (RU, DU and CU) against a complete commercial-grade Open RAN network deployed by DISH. "The Open RAN Center for Integration and Deployment (ORCID) will serve a critical role in strengthening the global Open RAN ecosystem and building the next generation of wireless networks," said Charlie Ergen, co-founder and chairman, EchoStar. "By leveraging DISH's experience deploying the world's first standalone Open RAN 5G network, ORCID will be uniquely positioned to test and evaluate Open RAN interoperability, performance and security from domestic and international vendors. We appreciate NTIA's recognition of DISH and ORCID's role in driving Open RAN innovation and the Administration's ongoing commitment to U.S. leadership in wireless connectivity." To date, this grant represents NTIA's largest award under the Public Wireless Supply Chain Innovation Fund (Innovation Fund). ORCID will be housed in DISH's secure Cheyenne, Wyoming campus and will be supported by consortium partners Fujitsu, Mavenir and VMware by Broadcom and technology partners Analog Devices, ARM, Cisco, Dell Technologies, Intel, JMA Wireless, NVIDIA, Qualcomm and Samsung. NTIA Administrator Alan Davidson and Innovation Fund Director Amanda Toman will join EchoStar Co-Founder and Chairman Charlie Ergen, EchoStar CEO Hamid Akhavan, EVP and Chief Network Officer Marc Rouanne and other stakeholders to announce the grant and tour a DISH 5G Open RAN cell site later today in Las Vegas. During this event, DISH will outline ORCID's unique advantages, including that it will leverage DISH's experience as the only operator in the United States to commercially deploy a standalone Open RAN 5G network. DISH and its industry partners have validated Open RAN technology at scale across the country; today DISH's network covers over 246 million Americans nationwide. At ORCID, participants will be able to test and evaluate individual or multiple network elements to ensure Open RAN interoperability, performance and security, and contribute to the development, deployment and adoption of open and interoperable standards-based radio access networks. ORCID's "living laboratory" will drive the Open RAN ecosystem — from lab testing to commercial deployment. Below are highlights of ORCID: ORCID will combine both lab and field testing and evaluation activities. ORCID will be able to test elements brought by any qualified vendor against DISH's live, complete and commercial-grade Open RAN stack. ORCID will use DISH's spectrum holdings, a combination of low-, mid- and high-band frequencies, enabling field testing and evaluation. ORCID will evaluate Open RAN elements through mixing and matching with those of other vendors, rather than validating a single vendor's stack. DISH's experience in a multi-vendor environment will give ORCID unique insights about the integration of Open RAN into brownfield networks. ORCID's multi-tenant lab and field testing will occur in DISH's secure Cheyenne, Wyoming facility, which is already compliant with stringent security protocols in light of its satellite functions. About DISH Wireless DISH Wireless, a subsidiary of EchoStar Corporation (NASDAQ: SATS), is changing the way the world communicates with the Boost Wireless Network. In 2020, the company became a nationwide U.S. wireless carrier through the acquisition of Boost Mobile. The company continues to innovate in wireless, building the nation's first virtualized, Open RAN 5G broadband network, and is inclusive of the Boost Infinite, Boost Mobile and Gen Mobile wireless brands.

Read More

Events