5G raises twin privacy concerns, says former Bell Labs/AT&T Labs researcher
While 5G promises significantly faster mobile data connections, it also raises two privacy concerns, according a former researcher at Bell Labs and AT&T Labs Research. Dr. Steve Bellovin, who is now a professor of computer science at Columbia University, says the first issue is location data. While iOS allows you to determine which apps can access your location, and when they can do it, carriers can locate you at cell tower level regardless of those settings – and 5G will make that much more precise. The second concern is privacy, where Bellovin pointed to the fact that Huawei is the leader in 5G base stations, and discussed the speculation of spyware in its telecoms kit.