Title:
Building Trustworthy and Resilient Cellular Networks
Abstract:
Cellular networks have evolved from communication systems into a fundamental computing infrastructure that supports billions of users, connected devices, and critical services. This transformation raises an important question: Can we trust cellular networks to operate securely and reliably when their behavior depends on complex protocols, distributed network functions, and increasingly dynamic cloud environments?
In this talk, I will explore this question through our research on cellular network security and systems design. I will first show how seemingly legitimate protocol operations can produce unintended security consequences, allowing adversaries to exploit network behavior even when cryptographic protections remain intact. I will then introduce our approach to systematically exploring protocol interactions and identifying vulnerabilities without exhaustively enumerating all possible network states. Moving from security to reliability, I will discuss how failures, mobility events, and sudden changes in network demand expose fundamental limitations in current 5G core designs. I will present our work on redesigning the cellular core to support more predictable execution, efficient recovery, and scalable operation in cloud environments. Through these examples, the talk will illustrate how understanding and rethinking network behavior can lay the foundation for trustworthy 5G and future 6G systems.
Speaker:
Taqi Raza
Assistant Professor, ECE Department, University of Massachusetts, Amherst
Bio:
Taqi Raza is an Assistant Professor in the ECE Department at UMass Amherst. His research focuses on the security of networked systems, including Next-Generation Mobile Networks, Quantum Networks, and FinTech. He has developed secure and reliable networked systems to address emerging challenges in these fields. His research is supported by NSF and the Center of Quantum Networks; and has been featured in several national and international media outlets.
Host: Professor John McNeill