What does 5G mean for digital security?

It is a reality that every technological advance to increase the use of digital infrastructure and applications in our society brings with it new levels of risk from those who seek to misuse technology. So, every nation must ensure that we are cyber resilient and can prepare for, respond to and recover from cyber incidents and attacks.

Scottish Government approach

Cyber security is essential to prevent harm to the integrity of the electronic devices and services that people and organisations use every day. The Scottish Government has stated that its approach to 5G is that security must be built in at the design stage and not as an afterthought (since the latter approach can leave devices vulnerable to being tampered with or misused). This will ensure that Scotland’s infrastructure, including the emergency services, communications, transport and utilities, such as electricity, gas and water supplies, is able to function efficiently and effectively respond to disruptive events.

5G applications will be far more connected to this physical world, with systems in remote areas, exposed to extreme weather conditions, or in situations where they are vulnerable to tampering. Therefore, it is vital to have the safe transfer and storage of confidential data for this digitally enhanced world to run smoothly.

Best practice and awareness

The Scotland 5G Centre is working with the Scottish Government to share knowledge across the emerging 5G community in Scotland. The Centre will collaborate to spread the word on best practice and raise awareness.


Through our S5GConnect programme, we offer businesses access to an integrated community of interest around cybersecurity

Not only does this remove complexity and barriers to entry, and reduce time to market, it also provides access to a unique demonstration and development environment where users can test and develop 5G applications and services.

To make sure you hear about upcoming S5GConnect activity, sign up for e-news.

Article published June 2020