5G in India: Concerns for users and their safety

The 5G movement is here and it's the latest generation of network and internet connectivity which is here to stay. In India, the 5G services will cut across 13 cities later this year. Meanwhile, the target for India is to have 5G across the country in the upcoming years.

There are a lot of expectations from the 5G network as it's to bring in a new era of connectivity, but there is also a likely threat from cybersecurity. Cybersecurity firm Kaspersky's main security concerns are from the network, while others are from devices connected to 5G. Conclusively there are risks both for businesses and consumers.

The most outstanding achievement of the 5G network would be the advancement of IoT. Internet of Things will be accessed by our daily devices to be more innovative and get connected By such connection; we talk intelligent locks. 5G connectivity would give manufacturers the drive to produce more devices and sell them for lower prices.

As a result, there would be the availability of affordable devices struggling with security won't be our concern. A device is a Cybersecurity challenge already. Fake apps would increase since different devices would be on the same network. Cyberattackers would have the best time of their lives when manufacturers don't concern themselves with security.

There would be a faster speed from the 5G network, which is for the betterment of all users. Adding more devices to the fast speed could put pressure on already Security monitoring methods at hand. There would be the drive to upgrade the security monitoring stations to protect users.

Cybersecurity would fasten their work to ensure that individual consumers' data is safe.

Did you know? The 5G infrastructure basis is built from hardware, software and cloud.

What happens to consumer Data?

It would be hard to accept the truth, but the reality remains that most users are not a bit concerned about how their data is used. The 5G network would triple the problem as data on laptops, smartphones and smart speakers can be mined. 5G connectivity will invariably release our data on the web. Unfortunately, when the data is out, we can't pinpoint where our data ends up and how it is used. Even the most popular social media application 'Facebook' can't guarantee to protect our data; how much more a manufacturer happily take our data to ensure 5G connectivity?

What can be done to be safe in the 5G era

For most people, these may sound absurd or sounds too basic. And most internet users also miss these elementary basics. When you get on the 5G network, try out these tips:-

Passwords.

It can't be overemphasised that keeping your passwords ridiculously strong is essential. It is not advisable to use dates like date of birth, “12345”, or even worse, “password” for passwords.

All IoT devices come with their own factory set of passwords. These devices come with credentials like username: admin; password: password. Immediately your device is installed, change them at that moment.

Updating your devices

It's just the beginning of the era of the 5G network, and as such, 5G will bring more devices to us. To be safe, ensure that smart devices such as lock, car infotainment, fridge, etc are frequently updated. Users should update any device connected to the Internet of Things regularly through firmware or OTA (over-the-air) updates.