Vulnerability of LTE to Hostile Interference

LTE is well on its way to becoming the primary cellular standard, due to its performance and low cost. Over the next decade we will become dependent on LTE, which is why we must ensure it is secure and available when we need it. Unfortunately, like any wireless technology, disruption through radio jamming is possible. This paper investigates the extent to which LTE is vulnerable to intentional jamming, by analyzing the components of the LTE downlink and uplink signals. The LTE physical layer consists of several physical channels and signals, most of which are vital to the operation of the link. By taking into account the density of these physical channels and signals with respect to the entire frame, as well as the modulation and coding schemes involved, we come up with a series of vulnerability metrics in the form of jammer to signal ratios. The ``weakest links'' of the LTE signals are then identified, and used to establish the overall vulnerability of LTE to hostile interference.Comment: 4 pages, see below for citation. M. Lichtman, J. Reed, M. Norton, T. Clancy, "Vulnerability of LTE to Hostile Interference'', IEEE Global Conference on Signal and Information Processing (GlobalSIP), Dec 201

Performance of advanced telecommand frame synchronizer under pulsed jamming conditions

This paper studies frame synchronization for use with the advanced communication link transmission unit format that was recently proposed for updating the telecommand synchronization and channel coding standard for space applications. With a view to improving the robustness against jamming, future satellite telecommand systems are planning to adopt direct-sequence spread spectrum modulation and advanced channel coding. Compared to the frame synchronization algorithm specified in the current Consultative Committee for Space Data Systems (CCSDS) recommendation, we consider a longer start sequence and relax the condition for declaring synchronization. We investigate the performance of this algorithm in the presence of jamming, and show that the frame synchronizer can be designed such that the overall system’s robustness against pulsed jamming is limited by the robustness of the code rather than the synchronizer

Inhibidor de señales LTE mediante plataforma software defined radio

This Bachelor Thesis consists in the realization of an application trough Software Defined Radio that inhibits the signal of LTE mobile communications system. The fact of working with mobile communications supposes a motivation in professional and academic aspects, because they are a leading economic activity in our society and it is the branch of the Bachelor Degree in Telecommunication Technologies I like the most. Inhibitors have multitude of utilities, even though its uses are limited within a legal framework to the areas related to public security, national defence, State security and activities related to Criminal Law. The goal will be to implement an application which can leave a specific operator's terminals (but available for all of them) without LTE signal inside the radius of inhibition. Also it will be the goal to minimize the relation in the user equipment between inhibitor's power and eNodeB's power, what means maximize the inhibition radius and minimize the inhibitor transmission power.Este trabajo fin de grado consiste en la realización de una aplicación mediante Software Defined Radio que inhibe la señal del sistema de comunicaciones móviles LTE. El hecho de trabajar con comunicaciones móviles supone una motivación tanto en lo profesional como en lo académico, ya que son una actividad económica puntera en nuestra sociedad y es la rama que más me ha gustado del Grado en Ingeniería en Tecnologías de Telecomunicaciones. Los inhibidores tienen multitud de utilidades, aunque su uso quedará limitado dentro del marco legal a las actividades relacionadas con la seguridad pública, la defensa nacional, la seguridad del estado y las actividades del Estado en el ámbito del Derecho Penal. El objetivo será realizar una aplicación que consiga dejar sin señal LTE a los terminales de una operadora específica (pero válida para todas) dentro del radio de inhibición minimizando la relación entre la potencia que recibe el móvil de la operadora y la que recibe de la aplicación, o lo que es lo mismo, consiguiendo el máximo radio de inhibición minimizando la potencia transmitida por la aplicación.Ingeniería en Tecnologías de Telecomunicació

Near-Real Time, Semi-Automated Threat Assessment of Information Environments

Threat assessment is a crucial process for monitoring and defending against potential threats in an organization’s information environment and business operations. Ensuring the security of information infrastructure requires effective information security practices. However, existing models and methodologies often fall short of addressing the dynamic and evolving nature of cyberattacks. Moreover, critical threat intelligence extracted from the threat agents lacks the ability to capture essential attributes such as motivation, opportunity, and capability (M, O, C). This contribution to knowledge clarification introduces a semi-automatic threat assessment model that can handle situational awareness data or live acquired data stream from networks, incorporating information security techniques, protocols, and real-time monitoring of specific network types. Additionally, it focuses on analysing and implementing network traffic within a specific real-time information environment. To develop the semi-automatic threat assessment model, the study identifies unique attributes of threat agents by analysing Packet Capture Application Programming Interface (PCAP) files and data stream collected between 2012 and 2019. The study utilizes both hypothetical and real-world examples of threat agents to evaluate the three key factors: motivation, opportunity, and capability. This evaluation serves as a basis for designing threat profiles, critical threat intelligence, and assessing the complexity of process. These aspects are currently overlooked in existing threat agent taxonomies, models, and methodologies. By addressing the limitations of traditional threat assessment approaches, this research contributes to advancing the field of cybersecurity. The proposed semi-automatic threat assessment model offers improved awareness and timely detection of threats, providing organizations with a more robust defence against evolving cyberattacks. This research enhances the understanding of threat agents’ attributes and assists in developing proactive strategies to mitigate the risks associated with cybersecurity in the modern information environment