5G mobile edge computing is poised to help federal agencies operate more efficiently and securely. The technology can do so by wirelessly connecting a wider range of devices and applications operating over federal networks.

In a recent FedScoop panel, NSA’s Technical Director Neal Ziring discusses why and how 5G is going to help agencies better protect national security.

“Just the latency and performance characteristics of 5G are going to allow the military services defense agencies, like NSA, to deploy new applications, using mobile edge compute and multi-axis edge compute,” he explains. “We’ll be able to put data out forward closer to the users that need it and offer them services with a much shorter turnaround time.”

Ziring also highlights the role of 5G in security and says: “The other aspect of 5G that’s going to be very important for [the Department of Defense] is the improved security and authentication and network management that it’s going to offer—the ability to distinguish different types of devices, give them access to different services, whether it’s mobile edge compute or via network slices.” He explains how that will allow agencies to offer more flexible, real-time services and in turn, open new application areas.

Joining the panel discussion, Wes Withrow, Verizon’s public sector solutions executive, elaborates on 5G bringing federal agencies a new generation of capabilities.

“It’s about reducing and eliminating a lot of the overhead required to address a lot of use cases that have just been previously off limits to them, whether it was cost, complexity or security,” he says. Withrow also explores the benefits of network slicing, which allows network operators to set up logical networks on top of a shared infrastructure.

“With 5G, you can do [network slicing] and have the flexibility to quickly change how that slice is controlled, because historically, for security and networking to be fused together and make changes to the network that took months, years, decades. But now we are having conversations about timeframes to where you can implement these different security capabilities in minutes, hours and weeks. So, it’s about security, but it’s about the speed to be able to adapt security.”

Learn more about how Verizon works with its DOD partners to better protect national defense.

This video panel discussion was produced by Scoop News Group for FedScoop and underwritten by Verizon.

The post How 5G can contribute to greater national security appeared first on FedScoop.

The U.S. Army is exploring how to modernize connectivity across their military bases with the adoption of 5G mobile edge compute (MEC) and “smart bases” that can wirelessly connect thousands of on-base IoT devices — including autonomous vehicles and drones — within the DOD’s network infrastructure.

5G connectivity gives the army the ability to stream data sets that would have otherwise been too big to move without hardware shares Dr. James Tucker Swindell II, chief of the U.S. Army’s Radio Frequency Communications Division

“So when we talk about the wider system of the military, it’s really something that could have applicability from a logistics perspective, from an operational perspective, [and] we can look at how 5G can affect the tactical battlespace being at the edge,” he explains in a recent FedScoop panel.

Dr. Swindell joined Lamont Copeland, managing director, federal solutions architect at Verizon in the panel to talk about how the U.S. Army is integrating 5G into its operations and leaning on key partnerships to get there.

“It’s going to be a large and difficult upbringing, because what you’re going to look through is working through these legacy technologies that are out there,” shares Lamont. “What 5G and the edge compute bring to bear is the quick innovation and quick incorporation of [modern capabilities] into these military bases.”

Paramount to that, Lamont says is working with a network partner that can bring in zero trust architecture to help ensure they are providing an extra layer of security for defense agencies.

Learn more about how the military is adopting 5G connectivity and how Verizon works with its DOD partners to modernize communications on U.S. military bases.

This video panel discussion was produced by Scoop News Group and FedScoop and underwritten by Verizon.

The post U.S. Army Chief on investments in “smart bases,” 5G networks and DOD networks appeared first on FedScoop.

5G and “Mobile Edge Compute” are poised to help modernize military bases by wirelessly connecting devices and vehicles operating within the Department of Defense’s network infrastructure.

In a recent FedScoop panel, the DOD’s Acting Principal Director for the 5G Initiative, Amanda Toman, shares that the DOD is now poised to look at initial investments with industry and leverage 5G in certain locations.

“The department really sees 5G as a potential to leverage what the commercial market is offering…in terms of communication. 5G — more so than 3G or 4G — really offers some of the features the Department can really leverage, things like low latency, ultra-high bandwidth, the Internet of Things,” Toman shares.

Joining the panel discussion, Bryan Schromsky, managing partner for the 5G Public Sector at Verizon, elaborates on some of Verizon’s challenges with their DOD partners to get 5G into bases.

“One of the challenges of getting 5G onto military bases is that there are still stovepipes…How do you get fiber to these locations? How do you get right away access…to locations that are still historical preservation sites? So, there’s limitations on what you can do to put in infrastructure,” he explains.

Learn more about how Verizon works with its DOD partners to modernize communications on U.S. military bases.

This video panel discussion was produced by Scoop News Group for FedScoop and underwritten by Verizon.

The post Dept of Defense’s plans to modernize military bases with 5G appeared first on FedScoop.