Grants and Contracts Details
Description
Collaborative Research: SaTC: CORE: Medium: An Anti-tracking and
Robocall-free Architecture for Next-G Mobile Networks
Abstract
Mobile tracking and robocalls are well-known privacy problems facing mobile users in current modern
mobile cellular networks. With the deployment of 5G mobile communications technology and beyond,
the tracking capability of a mobile network operator (MNO) allows it to constantly harvest users’
location and service data with unprecedently precision. In the meantime, automatic voice calls–-
commonly known as robocalls, have been widely exploited by scammers to perform telecom frauds. In
this project, we aim to develop a privacy-preserving mobile access architecture that can protect mobile
users from mobile tracking/profiling and robocall scams. We make the critical observation that the root
cause of mobile tracking and robocalls, along with most other privacy threats to mobile users, lies in the
fact that mobile users must reveal their long-term identities, represented by Subscription Permanent
Identifier (SUPI) and phone number, to the mobile network during their access to service. In response,
the proposed anti-tracking and robocall-free architecture allows a legitimate mobile user to access the
cellular service anonymously; different connections made by the same user at different times shall not
be linkable. To achieve practicality for real-world deployment, our architecture is also designed to be
backward compatible with the crucial mobile network functions in existing mobile networks, particularly
user accountability (when requested by law enforcement) and mobile calling functions. To realize the
above objectives, we plan to make novel combined use of anonymous credential (AC) and trusted
platform module (TPM) technologies that involve the design and verification of a suite of cryptographic
protocols as well as the construction of a testbed. The proposed architecture, protocols, and testbed,
once implemented and evaluated successfully, will not only solve the long-standing mobile tracking and
robocall problems but also contribute to the theoretical and practical knowhows toward building secure
and trustworthy next-G mobile systems.
Status | Active |
---|---|
Effective start/end date | 5/1/23 → 4/30/27 |
Funding
- National Science Foundation: $300,000.00
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