As part of my ENSURE-6G secondment to Vrije Universiteit Brussel (VUB), I have been exploring one of the most pressing questions shaping the future of next-generation networks:
What exactly will it take to secure 6G?
As 5G deployments continue to grow worldwide, the 6G research community is already exploring the threat landscape of systems built on unmatched speed, intelligence, and autonomy. My work in Work Package 1 (6G Security and Privacy Requirements) centres on this very challenge, understanding emerging risks before they manifest in the real world.
Exploring State-of-the-Art Cybersecurity for 6G
My initial task has been to review the current cybersecurity solutions capable of developing into the 6G era. This includes sophisticated threat-detection pipelines, AI-enhanced intrusion detection systems, zero-trust architectures, edge-based anomaly detection, quantum-resistant cryptography, and the increasing utilisation of federated learning for privacy-preserving network intelligence.
Many of these technologies are still developed with 5G in mind. A key question I explore is: what will fail, what will expand, and what must be reinvented when networks become highly decentralised, AI-native, and deeply integrated with critical infrastructure?
Early findings indicate that while attack detection is advancing, adversarial AI, spoofed sensor data, and widespread signalling manipulation will demand entirely new strategies. My review outlines these challenges and begins to identify research gaps that WP1 and ENSURE-6G can collaboratively address.
Identifying Critical Threats Facing Future 6G Networks
One of the main aims of this secondment is to foresee the significant threats that 6G networks will encounter by 2030 and beyond.
These include:
- Massive, AI-driven distributed attacks targeting both the radio and service layers
- Vulnerabilities introduced by intelligent surfaces, holographic MIMO, and new spectrum regimes
- Supply-chain and firmware-level threats amplified by disaggregated RAN
- Privacy risks from continuous sensing, localisation, and context-aware services
- Manipulation of edge AI models used for prediction, routing, and autonomous decision-making
I am developing a structured threat catalogue that aligns with emerging research and input from industrial partners, ensuring ENSURE-6G can proactively shape secure-by-design architectures.
Mapping Security & Privacy Requirements Across Use Cases
ENSURE-6G explores a range of use cases, from immersive communications to autonomous systems and advanced sensing. During my time at VUB, I am analysing these scenarios to identify the security and privacy requirements that must be considered from the earliest stages of design.
This involves:
- Identifying the assets and trust boundaries in each use case
- Exploring how data flows, models, and decision loops may be exploited
- Highlighting the required safeguards: confidentiality, integrity, availability, non-repudiation, and explainability
- Ensuring compliance with evolving regulatory frameworks in Europe
This work will directly inform the project’s deliverables and help guide WP1’s roadmap toward building holistic, future-proof protections for 6G services.
A Collaborative Research Environment
Being embedded within VUB’s research community has been an energising experience, the exchange of ideas, cross-disciplinary discussions, and collaborative problem-solving have all shaped my work. ENSURE-6G thrives on the diversity of expertise across its partners, and this secondment continues to reinforce the value of working closely across institutions and research domains.
On-going work
My ongoing work directly contributes to Deliverable D1.1: 6G Threat Analysis Report, which will soon provide a comprehensive overview of emerging risks and the necessary protections for next-generation networks. A separate update on this deliverable will be published in another blog post.
For now, the secondment at VUB has been a rewarding opportunity to contribute to defining the foundations of 6G security, a task as challenging as it is essential.
As I wrote on An’s visitor board, it was indeed
A lovely collaboration! 🙂
