Dear Colleagues,

The joint application of telecom and broadband internet services will be possible with the deployment of new technologies such as 5G. Fifth-generation technologies in the telecom industry provide a great opportunity for businesses to provide new and qualitative services, which will help them grow their businesses. Mobile network operators must build a dense optical network that will serve as the 5G infrastructure in order to provide telecommunications services as well as broadband internet services.

As the successor to 4G, 5G technology will provide not only high-speed data connectivity for broadband mobile, but also opportunities for industry verticals. It will support a technological and business innovation ecosystem that includes vertical industries such as automotive, agriculture, government, healthcare, manufacturing, public transportation, energy, and many more. In addition, it will be capable of supporting a broader range of interactive applications, with requirements ranging from high reliability to ultra-low latency and bandwidth mobility. Moreover, 5G technology will have a significant impact on the digital economy, boosting economic growth, improving QoL, and opening up new business opportunities.

As we move toward a more connected future enabled by 5G technology, we must pay equal attention to the security of those devices and applications. Building 5G on top of a weak cybersecurity foundation is like building on sand. This is not only a matter of the safety of end users or of the industry, but is more of a matter of national security. Aside from the numerous benefits that 5G technology provides, it creates a much broader and multidimensional vulnerability to cyber-attacks. As a result, special cyber strategies are required to support the 5G ecosystem. There are numerous ways for institutions to directly participate in the implementation of cybersecurity policies and strategies for 5G. This is possible through close collaboration between industry, government, and academia.

This Special Issue invites submissions of high-quality, previously unpublished papers addressing open challenges in 5G technology and cybersecurity challenges in 5G. Theoretical and experimental studies, as well as high-quality review and survey papers, are all encouraged.

Authors are invited to submit original research articles or comprehensive reviews on topics including (but not limited to):

• 5G network terminology, concepts and services;
• 5G NR: new levels of capability and efficiency;
• Dense optical backbone networks for 5G technology;
• 5G cloud RAN;
• 5G massive machine-type communications (m-MTC);
• The 5G NR spectrum;
• Massive MIMO deployment in 5G;
• Industrial IoT (I-IoT) and 5G;
• Industrial IoT with 5G private network;
• Threats, vulnerabilities, and attacks in 5G architectures;
• Securing 5G network infrastructure.

Dr. Arianit Maraj
Guest Editor
Dardan Maraj
Guest Editor Assistant

Manuscript Submission Information

Manuscripts should be submitted online at www.mdpi.com by registering and logging in to this website. Once you are registered, click here to go to the submission form. Manuscripts can be submitted until the deadline. All submissions that pass pre-check are peer-reviewed. Accepted papers will be published continuously in the journal (as soon as accepted) and will be listed together on the special issue website. Research articles, review articles as well as short communications are invited. For planned papers, a title and short abstract (about 100 words) can be sent to the Editorial Office for announcement on this website.

Submitted manuscripts should not have been published previously, nor be under consideration for publication elsewhere (except conference proceedings papers). All manuscripts are thoroughly refereed through a single-blind peer-review process. A guide for authors and other relevant information for submission of manuscripts is available on the Instructions for Authors page. Telecom is an international peer-reviewed open access quarterly journal published by MDPI.

Please visit the Instructions for Authors page before submitting a manuscript. The Article Processing Charge (APC) for publication in this open access journal is 1200 CHF (Swiss Francs). Submitted papers should be well formatted and use good English. Authors may use MDPI's English editing service prior to publication or during author revisions.

• 5G
• security
• industry verticals
• vulnerabilities
• industrial IoT
• cloud RAN
• open RAN