2024/10/12 by Joshua Moore, Moore, Joshua, Aly Sabri Abdalla +5 · 1 citation
Computer Science · #Cryptography and Security (cs.CR) #FOS: Computer and information sciences #FOS: Electrical engineering #Networking and Internet Architecture (cs.NI) #Software Testing and Debugging Techniques #Systems and Control (eess.SY) #VLSI and Analog Circuit Testing #electronic engineering #information engineering
paper · pdf · doi:10.48550/arxiv.2410.09641
openalex publication_date 2024/10/12 · openalex created_date 2025/10/10 · openalex updated_date 2026/07/28
With the rise of 5G and open radio access networks (O-RAN), there is a growing demand for customizable experimental platforms dedicated to security testing, as existing testbeds do not prioritize this area. Traditional, hardware-dependent testing methods pose challenges for smaller companies and research institutions. The growing wireless threat landscape highlights the critical need for proactive security testing, as 5G and O-RAN deployments are appealing targets for cybercriminals. To address these challenges, this article introduces the Soft Tester UE (soft T-UE), a software-defined test equipment designed to evaluate the security of 5G and O-RAN deployments via the Uu air interface between the user equipment (UE) and the network. The outcome is to deliver a free, open-source, and expandable test instrument to address the need for both standardized and customizable automated security testing. By extending beyond traditional security metrics, the soft T-UE promotes the development of new security measures and enhances the capability to anticipate and mitigate potential security breaches. The tool's automated testing capabilities are demonstrated through a scenario where the Radio Access Network (RAN) under test is evaluated when it receives fuzzed data when initiating a connection with an UE.