Tag: telecoms

Half a Million Vulnerabilities Leave Irish Businesses Exposed to Cybercriminals

Centripetal, the global leader in cybersecurity threat intelligence, has exposed critical security gaps leaving hundreds of thousands of Irish networks vulnerable to cyberattack.
Using its proprietary threat intelligence analytics platform, Centripetal has mapped cyberattack entry points across Ireland down to individual IP addresses* and networks, revealing which regions, industries, and organisations face the greatest risk.
The findings are stark:
  • 349,000 Irish networks (3.6% of the total) remain unprotected from active cyber threats.
  • 44% have exposed vulnerabilities.
  • Half a million vulnerabilities exist on exposed assets across Ireland as of September 2025.
  • Dublin faces the highest risk, recording the greatest concentration of vulnerabilities across all industries.
Centripetal’s Attack Surface Map identifies specific attack vectors – the methods cybercriminals use to exploit vulnerabilities and gain unauthorised access to systems, networks, and sensitive data. This granular visibility enables organisations to understand their exact exposure and take immediate action.
The threat is active and escalating:
  • 63% of compromised networks are leveraged to conduct active reconnaissance – attackers are probing systems and planning their strikes through Irish infrastructure
  • 11% are acting as command-and-control centers to coordinate attacks – cybercriminals have already infiltrated these systems and are working to further seize control of other target networks
  • 35% increase in active attacks launched or coordinated through Irish networks since 2024 – the scale of attacks has expanded dramatically as cybercriminals automate campaigns and target vastly more organisations simultaneously by leveraging sophisticated tools and technologies including AI.
This means thousands of Irish organisations are likely under attack right now, many without knowing it.
David Silke, Managing Director, Centripetal Ireland says, “Across Ireland, we can see that there are Critical National Infrastructure organisations that are currently exposed to attack vectors. We can see that the largest attack vector in Ireland at present are the ISPs (Internet service providers – the telecoms and hosting providers). Our technology can drill down to a granular level to show which customers of a particular provider are affected by these vulnerabilities at a street level.
“We’re calling for organisations in Ireland to review their cybersecurity provision and asking them to put more emphasis on the use of threat intelligence to protect themselves. We know that only 20% of organisations currently do this.  At Centripetal, our technology effectively cloaks these vulnerabilities, hiding them from attackers so they can’t be targeted,” says Silke.
CleanINTERNET technology, including its new Fusion product, blocks 99.99% of threats by providing complete network visibility. Unlike traditional solutions that only monitor traffic entering and leaving the network (north-south), Fusion also monitors internal traffic flows (east-west), creating comprehensive protection from every angle.
This dual capability means organizations can now:
  • Stop external threats before they breach the network
  • Detect insider threats by identifying suspicious behavior from internal users and systems
  • Receive real-time alerts when unusual activity occurs, whether from outside attackers or internal sources
 

How AI is Shaping the Future of Telecom Operations

After several years of experimentation and pilot projects, AI in the telecoms industry is now beginning to show measurable improvements. Industry data from providers, such as Subex, indicates that billing queries can be reduced by up to 60% through better automation and error reduction.

However, research conducted by MIT highlights a wider shift across the sector from early-stage innovation in labs to embedding AI solutions directly into operational IT systems.

These findings underscore a maturing landscape, where both vendors and communications service providers (CSPs) are focusing on practical deployment and demonstrating clear returns on investment.

Within this evolving context, Cerillion is providing a true product approach with AI built into the core of its BSS/OSS product suite, so CSPs can immediately benefit from the technology without needing any specific AI expertise or complex integration. This follows a “Bring Your Own” AI model, which supports all the major public large language models (LLMs), but can equally be used with private models.

In recognition of this progress, Cerillion has recently been positioned in Gartner’s Magic Quadrant™ for AI in CSP Customer and Business Operations. This new report reflects how AI capabilities are now becoming integral to core telecom operations, moving beyond pilot projects into large-scale deployments. With many CSPs looking to Gartner research when shaping their technology strategies, this acknowledgement underscores the growing importance of embedding AI within BSS/OSS platforms to deliver measurable business outcomes.

A key area of Cerillion’s solution involves GenAI-powered image recognition to support rapid product configuration.

This approach allows CSP teams to sketch new product ideas on a whiteboard, upload a picture into Cerillion’s Enterprise Product Catalogue, and the configuration is built automatically. This is already proving to significantly shorten product development lifecycles, with time savings of up to 95%.

Additionally, the company’s AI-driven promotions engine is used to support faster and more precise marketing campaigns, enabling offers tailored to customer behaviour and preferences.

AI adoption in telecoms is now focused towards delivering outcomes that matter, including:

  • Improving campaign efficiency and ROI
  • Optimising lead generation and conversion
  • Growing customer lifetime value
  • Improving operational efficiency

As technologies continue to advance, CSPs face increasing pressure to move beyond AI pilot projects and demonstrate tangible business value. Successful deployments are expected to integrate AI capabilities within core business support systems (BSS) and operations support systems (OSS), ensuring scalability, compliance, and smooth operation alongside existing infrastructure.

CSPs who effectively embed AI into their business processes, treating it as a foundational operational capability rather than a standalone feature, are likely to achieve faster and more sustainable benefits.

For CSPs aiming to modernise, the industry is at a turning point. Third-party benchmarks, such as those from Subex and academic studies from MIT, show a sector-wide transformation is underway. Cerillion’s ongoing innovation efforts, including AI-powered image recognition for product setup and AI-driven promotions, exemplify how emerging technologies can contribute to operational improvements and greater responsiveness to market needs.

 

Ookla Shares Analysis of Storm Éowyn’s Impact on Telecoms Infrastructure

The UK and Ireland are in recovery mode after Storm Éowyn wreaked havoc on electricity and telecoms infrastructure in recent days. With record wind gusts exceeding 180 km/h recorded in Ireland and a ‘major incident’ declared on the Isle of Man, the storm has been historic in both its strength and the extent of the damage caused across the islands.

Today, Ookla Shares Analysis of Storm Éowyn’s Impact on Telecoms Infrastructure severe and sustained decline in mobile performance across all operators in Ireland and parts of the UK on a scale not seen before.

On the day the storm made landfall (24th January), median mobile download speeds in Ireland (10.04 Mbps) were 78% lower than the preceding 7-day average of 47.43 Mbps, while median latency was 23% higher at 47.6 ms. In Scotland and Northern Ireland, mobile download speeds at the 10th percentile—a critical metric reflecting the poorest network performance—dropped significantly on the same day, falling by 63% to 2.19 Mbps and by 74% to 1.31 Mbps, respectively, compared to the 7-day average.

The unprecedented scale of impact on telecoms infrastructure serves as the latest and most high-profile call to action for hardening networks against increasingly frequent and severe storms in the UK and Ireland.

You can find the full analysis and Speedtest Intelligence® data here: https://www.ookla.com/articles/storm-eowyn

Aon’s M&A report reveals technology and telecoms sector most actively considering M&A activity

Aon plc, a leading global professional services firm, today published its latest report about the attitudes and actions regarding mergers and acquisitions (M&A) among senior business leaders in Ireland.

Aon’s M&A in Ireland 2023 Report surveyed 281 businesses across Ireland between June and July 2023.

Results show that 11 percent of all businesses are actively considering engaging in a merger or acquisition in the next 12 months. Businesses in the Technology, Media, and Telecom sector (TMT) are the most active for M&A, with 26 percent considering dealmaking in the next year. 17 percent of financial and professional services firms are also considering engaging in M&A activity in the next 12 months.

For firms considering M&A activity, the top reasons include accessing skilled talent (31 percent), increasing business efficiencies (30 percent), and building innovation capacity for the future (28 percent). The top motivator for TMT businesses was expansion into new jurisdictions (46 percent) while 37 percent of financial and professional services firms indicated that expansion into new business areas was a key driver.

Nearly 2 in 3 firms (62 percent) that engaged in M&A over the past 12 months said the deals had achieved their strategic objectives, indicating that M&A activity may increase should economic conditions improve.

Evolving risk landscape

The risk landscape for Irish firms has shifted considerably over the past 12 months. Rising inflation (56 percent) remains the top risk to M&A for Irish businesses, although it has fallen by 13 percent since last year, indicating businesses are at a turning point in managing its impact on their M&A strategy. Lack of sustainable investment options (44%) and high valuations (43%) make up the remaining spots within the top three risks identified by business leaders in Ireland considering M&A activity.

Cyber and ESG due diligence rise

Cyber security and Environmental, Social and Governance (ESG) factors continue to rise up the due diligence agenda for Irish firms.

The majority (62%) of Irish businesses consider cyber security and technology risks before concluding an M&A deal – a 7 percent increase on last year’s report. There are differences in the treatment of cyber risk among organisations of different sizes, with 41 percent of large businesses considering cyber security due diligence on every deal. In contrast, 31 percent of mid-sized businesses, do not consider cyber security at all in relation to M&A, suggesting smaller companies may not have the capabilities in place to effectively evaluate these risks.

35% of organisations in Ireland say ESG standards are extremely important pre-transaction, a modest gain (2 percent) on last year’s results. 43 percent of businesses have not considered ESG factors at all up until now. Irish firms are still significantly behind their global counterparts in their assessment of the importance of ESG risk. According to Aon’s Global M&A Risk in Review survey 72 percent of businesses expect ESG to be the most significant risk facing their organisations in the next 12 months.

The availability of sustainable investment (21 percent) is the top ESG factor for Irish firms when assessing a potential merger or acquisition, followed by the impact of the business on climate (19 percent) and diversity on company boards (19 percent).

Importance of human capital and taxation

Aon’s research shows other key factors considered by business leaders in due diligence include financials, legal, human capital, and taxation. Human capital was identified as a main area of focus for due diligence when considering M&A by 42 percent of businesses, reflecting the importance of talent in a labour market with unemployment near a historic low.

Taxation is cited by 42 percent of businesses as a key concern in determining whether to conduct an M&A transaction. 1 in 4 businesses stated that the tax rate that will apply to future profits following an acquisition or merger is their key tax concern, indicating the impact of continuing uncertainty regarding the OECD’s global minimum tax rate proposals.

Karl Curran, Head of M&A and Transaction Solutions at Aon Ireland, said: “Despite growth in the domestic economy, organisations continue to navigate a challenging business environment from a tight labour market, to rising operating costs and increasing levels of cyber-attacks.

 “Aon’s latest M&A in Ireland Report shows that these challenges are creating uncertainty among businesses, with almost 90% of businesses either less likely or unsure of whether they will engage in M&A activity in the coming year. However, when broken down by sectors, there is stronger appetite for M&A activity among firms in the Technology, Media, and Telecom sector and the Financial and Professional Services sector.

“The risk landscape for Irish businesses continues to evolve at pace. Addressing emerging areas of risk such as cyber security will be critical to long-term success. The impact of potential cyber-attacks can be deeply damaging. According to the 2023 Aon Cyber Resilience Report, major cyber incidents typically result in a 9% decrease in shareholder value for businesses in the 12 months following an attack. In this context, we welcome the findings from today’s report that more firms in Ireland are prioritising cyber risk as part of M&A due diligence. However, with a significant number of businesses still not screening for cyber risk at all, many firms need to urgently put these capabilities in place.

“With firms in Ireland facing a growing set of new and evolving risks, the insights from Aon’s M&A in Ireland Report help shine a spotlight on the trends in this area but critically highlight the risks and due diligence that companies should be considering as part of any M&A activity. We hope that the data will be a useful tool in helping to guide Ireland’s business leaders towards making better-informed decisions to meet the challenges of an increasingly complex M&A environment.”

HCS to grow its telecoms revenue to €1 million following Fixaphone acquisition

HCS, a leading business IT, security and telecoms company, is today announcing that it has acquired Waterford-based Fixaphone, a leading provider of business telephone systems. Following the acquisition, HCS forecasts that its telecoms turnover will reach €1 million in the next three years. The acquisition will add 750 Fixaphone business telecoms customers to HCS’ portfolio, which will increase by 125% following the deal.

In business for more than 20 years, Fixaphone specialises in on-premise PBX telephony sales and maintenance for small businesses. Combining this deep industry knowledge with HCS’ modern cloud-hosted telecoms solutions will provide both customer bases with an enhanced service offering as the move to the cloud continues in earnest.

HCS provides secure integrated IT, telecoms and productivity solutions to enable better business performance for Irish organisations. The company uses secure by design principles to ensure that it significantly reduces risk for customers with security built in. Headquartered in Waterford and with a base in Dublin, the company recently opened a third location in Cork.

Fixaphone will integrate into HCS and trade under the HCS brand with immediate effect. The acquisition will enhance HCS’ telecom sales team and allow it to cross-sell to each customer base, driving value and enabling them to grow and innovate. Fixaphone customers include Brothers of Charity Services, Keeling’s, Fitzgerald Power Chartered Accountants, and Mount Congreve Estate.

Mick Foley, Managing Director, Fixaphone: “HCS are leaders in the hosted telecoms sphere, so I’m delighted that we are joining forces. By combining our skillsets, we can provide an enhanced level of services and support to our existing and prospective clients.

“Though technologies and platforms are changing, the telecoms knowledge and experience built up with Fixaphone over the last 20 years will be invaluable on the next stage of the journey. We have the golden opportunity to leverage each other’s expertise to accelerate our shared growth.”

Sean Hegarty, Head of Operations, HCS: “We are thrilled to announce this acquisition and welcome Fixaphone to our team. Merging the pool of knowledge and experience that Fixaphone brings with our modern telecommunications solutions will give us a powerful edge. We look forward to building on this as we continue on our upward growth trajectory.

“In today’s hybrid work environment, effective business communication is paramount. We feel we are well placed as the move from on-premise to cloud accelerates and traditional non-digital telephony becomes obsolete. This acquisition will bolster our telecoms services offerings, so we can provide our customers with best-in-class solutions to allow them greater flexibility and enable them to grow.”

Nokia launches new UBT-T XP Dual Band Radio at Mobile World Congress 2022 #MWC22

Nokia is showcasing the UBT-T XP Dual Band radio, the latest addition to its award-winning Wavence product family, at Mobile World Congress 2022. Designed to support mobile operators and enterprises, the extreme high-power outdoor unit delivers high-capacity and dual-carrier functionality with the best system gain available in an outdoor package. The UBT-T XP supports the low-frequency spectrum bands 6GHz to 11 GHz and is ideal for full outdoor or split-mount configurations. Its exclusive 6/11 dual-band feature provides maximum flexibility for interference mitigation and spectrum efficiency and delivers the highest path performance and capacity in its class. The UBT-T XP is available from Q3 2022.

Nokia’s UBT-T XP unique dual-band solution provides a channel at 6Ghz and a channel at 11Ghz in a single outdoor unit. The UBT-T XP supports multi-frequency carrier aggregation with mixed channel sizes and high modulation schemes that can carry 2.5 Gbps over the air. As part of the UBT-T XP solution, Nokia offers 4+0, 6+0, and 8+0 configurations using the Outdoor Combining Module with Nokia’s high-performance adjacent channels filters, providing the maximum flexibility for frequency selection and spectrum efficiency. The UBT-T XP is also integrated into the Nokia Network Services Platform for common management for full end-to-end management of the network.

Nokia’s comprehensive Wavence portfolio provides a complete microwave solution for all uses cases covering short-haul, long-haul, E-Band, and SDN-based management both for Service Providers and Enterprises. Its zero-footprint implementation for full-outdoor architectures can be integrated directly with RAN and IP devices with common management.

Giuseppe Targia, Vice President, Microwave Radio Links at Nokia said: “This new dual-carrier solution enhances our industry-leading Wavence portfolio offering our customers an alternative 5G backhaul solution with scalable coverage and capacity. Microwave technology ensures we can deliver high-capacity services over long distances which is critical when fiber can’t be deployed.”

Public understanding of 5G benefits remains low with just one in 10 making use of it

56% of people in Ireland don’t understand the benefits of 5G, compared to 64% the year previous, according to Deloitte Ireland’s Digital Consumer Trends Report, which looked at consumers’ attitudes towards 5G. With just one in 10 using 5G at the time of the survey – the majority aged 18-24 (17%) – more than half (54%) of consumers said that they can’t tell the difference between 4G and 5G.

Although 61% of people think they will have better network connectivity (faster, more reliable) on 5G than on 4G, consumer adoption is slow and there is complacency towards switching with 15% of respondents saying they would switch as soon as it’s available in their region, 13% would switch if they hear good things about it, 18% say they would switch if was the standard offering and there was no alternative and 30% noted they would probably switch eventually. When it comes to network offerings, over a third (36%) said they would change network operator based on 5G coverage.

There has also been ongoing debate around health concerns with 5G and while people are less concerned about the health risks associated with 5G than they were in 2020 (16% vs 20%), 38% still feel that they “don’t know” if there are health risks associated.

The Deloitte Digital Consumer Trends report is an annual survey of 1,000 consumers in Ireland, aged between 18 and 75, which explores their digital usage and attitudes towards technology.

Commenting on the report, John Kehoe, Audit Partner at Deloitte Ireland said: “While the concept of 5G has been talked about for some time, the benefits are still not clear to consumers. Education on these benefits and dispelling the myths around health concerns will be essential as the rollout picks up, particularly as work moves to a hybrid model, because the current wired broadband network is not built for a sustainable work from home scenario. The opportunity here is for 5G to complement the wired broadband network.

“The government’s Digital Ireland Framework published earlier this month set out a target to have 5G coverage in all populated areas by 2030. Collaboration of key stakeholders will be a critical factor in enabling successful deployment across the country. There needs to be a significant investment and capital injection to support the rollout, from cell towers to power consumption tracking. Until this investment is clear, it may be some time until consumers can fully reap the benefits of 5G including improved health and wellbeing, enhanced entertainment and smarter, connected cities.”

Practicalities driving purchasing decisions

Aside from price, battery life is the top feature that influences consumers’ purchasing decision on phones, followed by storage capacity and camera functionality and quality. Ease of use features as the second most important factor for the 55-64 and 65-75 age cohorts (39% and 43% respectively). 5G only ranks number 10 on the list of priorities and is of similar importance, or lack thereof, for all age brackets with the 45-54 cohort caring the most about it (13%) and 55-64 caring the least (6%).

“Currently, most devices in Ireland are not 5G compatible which is naturally a key barrier to adoption. However, as 5G isn’t high on the agenda for consumers, it further highlights the need for education on the benefits,” concluded Kehoe.

Dell Technologies Telecom Solutions Simplify and Accelerate Modern, Open Network Deployments

Dell Technologies (NYSE:DELL) introduces new telecommunications solutions and services to bolster the open telecom ecosystem and help communications service providers (CSPs) affordably ramp their transformation to open, cloud-native networks.

The telecommunications industry’s growing open ecosystem gives CSPs more choice in their technologies and partners as they modernize to cloud-native networks. CSPs need the various technologies of this open ecosystem to work together seamlessly to offer differentiated edge services and reduce costs. Dell aims to remove complexity and speed modern network deployments with its Dell Telecom Cloud Foundation, Dell Open RAN Accelerator and new telecom solutions and lab capabilities.

“Communications service providers are changing how they build and deploy open networks, establishing the foundation on which they can develop and deliver innovative services to capture the edge opportunity,” said Dennis Hoffman, senior vice president and general manager, Dell Technologies Telecom Systems Business. “Our expanded telecom solutions portfolio brings the open ecosystem together for network operators, giving them the simplicity and reliability they need to modernize their networks and monetize new services.”

Dell Telecom Multi-Cloud Foundation speeds network modernization, business growth

The Dell Telecom Multi-Cloud Foundation is a turnkey, end-to-end, modern network infrastructure solution that helps CSPs build and deploy open, cloud-native networks faster with lower cost and complexity. The Telecom Multi-Cloud Foundation includes Dell hardware, Dell Bare Metal Orchestrator management software and the CSPs’ choice of integrated telecom cloud software platforms, including Red Hat, VMware and Wind River.

Dell is adding new Dell Bare Metal Orchestrator Modules to its software, giving CSPs the ability to deploy and lifecycle manage the entire cloud foundation stack. Once implemented, CSPs will have a scalable cloud foundation spanning core, edge and RAN for their open hardware and software environment with the flexibility to design and deploy open network functions and differentiated edge services. ACG Research estimates an up to 39% OpEx savings for CSPs deploying the Telecom Multi-Cloud Foundation in their networks. ACG Research found CSPs also save time on testing and certification, manual processes, server provisioning, software upgrades and cloud stack integration and testing.

Dell and Marvell collaborate on new hardware to accelerate Open RAN

With the introduction of virtualized and Open RAN architectures, 5G networks are undergoing a transformation that brings cloud scalability to the RAN. Existing virtualized and Open RAN alternatives have previously lacked the performance of established networks, hindering the ability for CSPs to implement cloud-native 5G.

Developed in collaboration with Marvell, the Dell Open RAN Accelerator Card is a new inline 5G Layer 1 processing card for vRAN and Open RAN solutions. Designed for Dell PowerEdge and other x86-based servers, the PCIe accelerator card brings the same Marvell OCTEON® Fusion technology and performance of today’s leading 5G radio networks to the Open RAN ecosystem. CSPs can have better performing systems that lower cost and power consumption, allowing them to affordably scale high performing, modern radio access networks with an open architecture approach.

“Marvell is delighted to partner with Dell Technologies to enable an open, virtualized 5G RAN architecture that delivers advanced features and performance built on our proven OCTEON® Fusion platform,” said Raj Singh, executive vice president, Processors Business Unit at Marvell. “The new Dell Open RAN Accelerator Card is an innovative no-compromise, cloud-native, in-line, Open RAN Layer 1 acceleration solution that addresses the shortcomings of existing vRAN alternatives.”

“We’re pleased to see Dell Technologies and Marvell come together to innovate and create technologies that will enhance Open RAN platform capability and vendor diversity for operators,” said Andy Dunkin, Open RAN RF and digital platform development manager at Vodafone. “The promise of virtualized Open RAN platforms will be enhanced with the Dell Open Ran Accelerator Card that should offer network operators like Vodafone a less costly and more efficient path to Open RAN.”

Dell and ecosystem partners help speed deployment of edge and core solutions

Dell continues to grow its open partner ecosystem with new telecom solutions for edge and core.

  • Dell Validated Design for Services Edge 1.2 brings together edge compute resources with private wireless connectivity, enabling the ease of deployment, scalable operations and security capabilities required for large numbers of edge locations. Enterprises can place sensors and devices at the edge of mobile networks to capture and process data in near-real time, and use the data to generate insights, optimize operations and help increase productivity. The open standards-based design now supports Airspan 5G RAN for a fast deployment of enterprise private 5G networks.
  • Dell Validated Design for the 5G Core with Oracle and VMware gives CSPs the choice to build a robust, scalable 5G core on industry standard infrastructure, in a more secure and reliable way. The solution can help reduce the time needed to design, test and integrate network components from multiple partners.

 

Dell expands telecom services and lab capabilities to drive faster ecosystem innovation

Dell continues to grow its telecom services capabilities to lead partner integration and accelerate CSPs’ deployment and adoption of telecom solutions. CSPs can quickly operationalize network infrastructure with Dell ProDeploy for NFVI. The service combines Dell factory integration and field deployment options to flexibly build the optimal NFV infrastructure specific to each customer’s network. The service integrates compute, networking and telecom cloud software platforms, helping CSPs deploy workloads faster and at scale, saving them time and cost. Dell’s proven processes enable 68% faster infrastructure deployment time with ProDeploy.

The Dell Open Telecom Ecosystem Lab Solution Integration Platform helps CSPs and partners securely connect their lab resources to the Dell lab and infrastructure to develop and bring 5G and telecom edge services to market more quickly. With the labs interconnected to create a mini, open ecosystem, the Solution Integration Platform uses the latest DevOps techniques to conduct tests faster than manual testing, so services can be brought to market more quickly, with less risk and cost. CSPs and partners can use the new platform to conduct integrated testing and ongoing lifecycle management of Open RAN, 5G and edge services and applications.