An Efficient Risk Impact and Vulnerability Assessment Framework for NB-IoT Networks

The cybersecurity risk assessment methodologies have evolved over the previous decade, serving ever increasingly sophisticated and diverse networks and systems. Resilient cybersecurity systems have allowed businesses and governments to better defend themselves against threats from malicious entities. With the rising complexity of user-centric and heterogeneous cellular networks, the need for automated cybersecurity risk assessment has become an emerging research challenge. This challenge extends to the emerging technologies including Narrowband Internet of Things (NB-IoT), which is the focus of this paper. As the intricacies of NB-IoT networks increase, the need for security risk assessment and trust building also becomes dire. In this paper, we have developed a comprehensive NB-IoT network security risk assessment framework. We have presented a risk assessment taxonomy that encompasses three dimensional challenges including service management, application & cloud, and edge architecture. This developed framework defines the level and severity of security assurance in terms of risk management for a single point of failure. Through this investigation, we highlight, quantify, and present some key vulnerabilities pertaining to NB-IoT network security and make recommendations to manage such vulnerabilities in order to develop a trusted network.