Zero-Trust Network Core and SOC Uplift for a Mobile Operator
CYVERRA delivered an integrated zero-trust architecture and automated security operations uplift for a national mobile carrier. The programme unified signaling security, cloud-native core workload isolation, and 24/7 automated threat response.
Tier-1 national telecommunications provider
- -74%
- Mean time to remediate (MTTR)
- -68%
- False-positive alert volume
- < 45s
- Core signaling threat containment
- 72%
- Automated alert triage rate
The Challenge
The operator managed a hybrid infrastructure spanning legacy SS7/Diameter signaling gateways, newly deployed 5G standalone core functions, and distributed edge computing nodes. Visibility across these heterogeneous environments was fragmented, leaving critical network interfaces vulnerable to sophisticated subscriber spoofing, unauthorized core queries, and lateral movement between enterprise IT and telco production networks. Existing security tooling operated in strict silos, with legacy SIEM platforms generating over 120,000 un-triaged alerts weekly. Incident response teams struggled to correlate core telecommunications protocol anomalies with enterprise IT network telemetry, leading to critical detection delays and an average mean time to remediate (MTTR) exceeding 18 hours. In addition, evolving critical national infrastructure (CNI) regulatory mandates required strict data segregation, cryptographic verification of microservices within virtualised network functions (VNFs), and auditable incident tracking across multi-tenant subscriber data planes.
Our Approach
CYVERRA engineered an end-to-end zero-trust architecture across the carrier's signaling gateways, virtualised EPC/5G cores, and network management networks. We implemented identity-aware microsegmentation, mutual TLS (mTLS) service mesh encryption, and strict protocol inspection firewalls to monitor Diameter, GTP-C, and HTTP/2 control planes in real time without introducing latency. We integrated a centralized Security Orchestration, Automation, and Response (SOAR) platform with cloud-native SIEM telemetry. Custom threat detection playbooks were engineered specifically for telecommunications attack vectors, including automated mitigation of SIM-swap anomalies, GTP tunnel abuse, and unauthorized signaling access points. To ensure sustained operational resilience, CYVERRA restructured the carrier's tier-1/tier-2 SOC workflows. We embedded automated initial alert triage, established continuous compliance monitoring against telecom security baselines, and integrated automated breach-and-attack simulation pipelines to continually validate perimeter and core defences.
The Outcome
The implementation reduced alert volume fatigue and drastically accelerated threat containment across core mobile networks. Mean time to remediate critical security events decreased by 74%, while automated SOAR playbooks successfully contained identified signaling anomalies in under 45 seconds without service interruption. The operator achieved complete compliance with national critical infrastructure security frameworks and hardened its 5G transition pathway. The unified zero-trust posture also lowered insurance premiums and enabled the rapid rollout of secure private 5G network slices for regulated enterprise clients.
Technology used
- Palo Alto Networks Cortex XSOAR
- Microsoft Sentinel
- Istio Service Mesh
- HashiCorp Vault
- Fortinet FortiGate
- Kubernetes Network Policies
- Zeek Network Security Monitor
CYVERRA established deep visibility across our signaling layer and IT core, turning complex multi-protocol telemetry into actionable, automated defence.