New Telecom Networks: Enterprises and Security

Nowadays, the Internet has become an irreplaceable tool, feeding us information about new innovations and the evolution of the markets relating to all human activities. What the Internet lacks, though, is a guiding narrative thread, which is crucial to understand the evolution from old technologies into the technologies available today, and to benefit from the commentary which could elucidate that process of evolution. In spite of its inherent richness, no encyclopedia can constitute the one and only referential information source. The actors involved also have the right to be heard: all those who have devoted their working lives to the collective effort of edifying networks can, of course, present their personal views about the evolution of the world of telecommunications, and thus provide invaluable testimony to companies in this area who can make use of it. It is that approach which is adopted in this book. Whilst the primary objective of this book is to encourage SMEs to use digital technologies, and help them to organize with that goal in mind, it has proved necessary to describe the transformations currently under way in the field of networks, and to outline the efforts to obtain a competitive edge in terms of clerical applications, compare the various techniques that are available for high data rate communications, and touch upon the advent of the "Internet of Things", cloud computing and various new multimedia technologies. All in all, this book should help companies – particularly SMEs – to garner overall information about the current movement in the area of networking, and assist them in putting in place and managing their own communications systems.

Table of Contents:
Foreword xv Introduction xvii Chapter 1. Fundamentals 1 1.1. Different kinds of network 1 1.1.1. Classic definitions 1 1.1.2. National networks and international connections 3 1.1.3. Network exploiters and operators 5 1.1.4. Economic role of MVNOs and VNO 8 1.1.5. Public and private networks 8 1.1.6. Fixed and radio networks 9 1.1.7. Main operators worldwide 10 1.1.8. Pan-European network project 11 1.1.9. Single European hub for telecoms regulation 12 1.1.10. Pooling of network infrastructures 12 1.1.11. Energy consumption of telecoms systems 12 1.2. Financial aspects relating to networks 13 1.2.1. Economic studies in telecommunications 13 1.2.2. Cost price 14 1.2.3. Financial mechanisms involved 15 1.2.4. Cost of networks and operator charges 16 1.2.5. The hidden income source for long-standing network operators 16 1.3. Historical overview of the communications market 17 1.3.1. Industry in France 17 1.3.2. Components, past and present 19 1.3.3. Tomorrow’s components 20 1.3.4. History of network operators 23 1.3.5. Financing of networks 24 1.3.6. National and international legislation 24 1.4. Networking techniques 25 1.4.1. Analog vs. digital 25 1.4.2. Circuit-switching 27 1.4.3. Data packet switching and the Internet 28 1.4.4. Intelligent networks and NGNs 30 1.4.5. Range and availability of networks 30 1.4.6. Confidentiality 31 1.5. Choices available to companies in a changing world 32 1.5.1. SMEs faced with ICT 32 1.5.2. SMEs faced with the choice of a connection 33 1.5.3. Factors in choosing a connection for a company 33 1.6. Summary 34 Chapter 2. Communication Techniques 35 2.1. Transmission parameters 35 2.1.1. Frequency ranges in transmission 36 2.1.2. Attenuation 37 2.1.3. Phase, jitter and latency 38 2.1.4. Noise and crosstalk 38 2.1.5. Synchronization 39 2.1.6. Echoes 39 2.1.7. Micro-cuts 39 2.1.8. Error rate on binary elements 39 2.2. Modulation and encoding 39 2.2.1. Main types of modulation 39 2.2.2. Frequency Division Multiplexing (FDM) 40 2.2.3. Wave Division Multiplexing (WDM) 40 2.2.4. Time Division Multiplexing (TDM) 41 2.2.5. Source encoding and channel encoding 41 2.2.6. Error management 43 2.3. Switching 44 2.4. Signaling in networks 46 2.5. Protocols and data exploitation 47 2.5.1. Information to be transmitted 47 2.5.2. Exploitation of digital connections 48 2.5.3. Modes of communication 48 2.5.4. Data rate of a digital connection 51 2.6. The “OSI model” 52 2.6.1. Definition of communication protocols 52 2.6.2. Principle of the OSI model 53 2.6.3. The seven layers of the OSI model 54 2.6.4. Evolution of the OSI model 55 2.6.5. Information Communication Architecture (ICA) 56 2.6.6. Layers 1 and 2 in WANs 57 2.6.7. Layer 3 in WANs 58 2.6.8. The TCP/IP and UDP/IP combination 59 2.6.9. Data encapsulation 62 2.6.10. Network protocols associated with IP 64 2.7. Local Area Network (LAN) 67 2.7.1. PBX and LAN 67 2.7.2. Functions of PBX 67 2.7.3. LAN 68 2.7.4. Structure of Local Area Networks 69 2.7.5. Construction of a private local area network 69 2.7.6. Organization of an LAN 70 2.7.7. Audio Video Bridging 71 2.7.8. Main protocols in LANs 71 2.8. Public data networks (Wide-Area Networks – WANs) 75 2.8.1. Functional characteristics 75 2.8.2. Telecomputing over PSTN 76 2.8.3. WAN protocols 77 2.8.4. Routers 78 2.8.5. The access network and the WAN 79 2.9. Network management 79 2.10. Summary 80 Chapter 3. Transmission Supports 81 3.1. Description of supports 81 3.1.1. Two-wire or quad-wire metal cables 81 3.1.2. Coaxial cables 82 3.1.3. Fiber-optic 82 3.1.4. Wireless systems 83 3.1.5. Audio-video connections 84 3.2. Digital wireless access systems 85 3.2.1. Public 2G and 3G wireless systems 85 3.2.2. LTE, WiMAX and 4G 88 3.2.3. Wi-Fi networks 95 3.2.4. Small-cell network (SCN, microcells) 97 3.2.5. Heterogeneous Networks (HetNets) 100 3.2.6. Software-Defined Networks – SDN and SUN 101 3.2.7. SONs (Self-Organizing Networks) 102 3.2.8. TETRA and PMR 103 3.2.9. RAN – Cellular Backhaul Links 103 3.2.10. Dedicated satellite Internet network 105 3.3. ADSL systems 105 3.4. Power-Line Communications (PLC) 107 3.5. Composite access networks 107 3.5.1. Shared fiber and divided fibers: FTTx 107 3.5.2. Connection with a single optical fiber 109 3.5.3. Combination of fiber and metal wire pairs – PONs 110 3.5.4. Hybrid fiber and coaxial (HFC) 111 3.5.5. Combinations of fiber and wireless systems 112 3.5.6. VPN using IP or Ethernet 112 3.6. Specific network structures 113 3.6.1. The IPX Architecture from GSMA 113 3.6.2. Content Delivery Networks (CDNs) 115 3.7. Reminder of the possible data rates 115 3.7.1. Long-distance digital connections 115 3.7.2. Digital connections in the access network 116 3.7.3. Overview of high data rate services 116 3.8. Regulations to be observed by operators 117 Chapter 4. Networking Protocols 119 4.1. Problems needing to be resolved 119 4.1.1. The double-edged duality of networks 119 4.1.2. Diversity of terminals 120 4.1.3. Proliferation of applications 121 4.1.4. Increased volume of traffic 121 4.1.5. The constant feeling of insecurity 122 4.2. Circuit-switching and network intelligence 123 4.2.1. PSTN (Public Switched Telephone Network) 123 4.2.2. ISDN (Integrated Services Digital Network) 125 4.2.3. Circuit-switching 126 4.2.4. The “intelligent network” (1980) 128 4.3. Packet-Switched Data Network (PSDN) 129 4.3.1. PSDN: packets and datagrams 129 4.3.2. Addressing in IPv4 130 4.3.3. Addressing in IPv6 131 4.3.4. Mutation from IPv4 to IPv6 131 4.3.5. Adoption of IPv6 132 4.3.6. The Long Walk to IPv6 134 4.4. NGNs and IMS (IP Multimedia Subsystem) 136 4.4.1. Definitions 136 4.4.2. Principle of IMS 137 4.4.3. Characteristics of IMS 140 4.4.4. SIP (protocol) 142 4.4.5. Long-distance SIP (SIP Trunking) 143 4.4.6. Discord regarding SIP Trunking 144 4.4.7. Diameter 144 4.5. Virtualization 145 4.5.1. Network Function Virtualization 145 4.5.2. Virtualization in companies 147 4.5.3. Virtualization and fault localization 148 4.6. Network security 149 4.6.1. The five major points of security 149 4.6.2. Attacks on the network 150 4.6.3. Computer attacks 151 4.6.4. Cyber-espionage 153 4.6.5. Securing of exchanges 154 4.6.6. Vulnerabilities of mobile terminals 155 4.6.7. Virtual Private Networks and security 156 4.7. Conclusion 158 Chapter 5. Voice Service and Messaging 159 5.1. Criteria of quality for voice signals 159 5.2.Voice interface 160 5.2.1. Analog technique 160 5.2.2. Digital technique 161 5.2.3. Digitization of voice signals 162 5.2.4. PBX 162 5.2.5. Special PBXs 163 5.3. VoIP and ToIP 164 5.3.1. Compression of voice signals and use of a protocol 164 5.3.2. Justification for VoIP 165 5.3.3. HD Voice Communications 165 5.4. Clerical works 166 5.4.1. Collaborative communications 166 5.4.2. Technologies today 167 5.4.3. Terminology surrounding the various services 169 5.4.4. Rich Communication Suite (RCS) 171 5.4.5. LTE and associated services 172 5.4.6. IPX (IP eXchange) structure 177 5.4.7. VoIP on cloud (Hosted VoIP) 180 5.4.8. Examples of professional messaging services 181 5.4.9. Telephony and messaging via the Internet 181 5.4.10. WebRTC 183 5.4.11. WebRTC and DTMF 185 5.4.12. The end of the legacy telephone network (12 June 2018) 186 5.4.13. Difficulties and barriers 187 5.5. Exploitation of messaging 189 5.5.1. Short Message Service 189 5.5.2. Competition in the area of SMS 190 5.5.3. Stealth SMS 190 5.5.4. MMS 190 5.5.5. SMS traffic 191 5.6. Communications with the emergency services 191 5.6.1. Principles 191 5.6.2. Mass notification system (MNS) 192 5.6.3. Roadside Assistance Service 192 5.7. Conclusion 193 Chapter 6. Data Applications 195 6.1. Multimedia services 195 6.2. Digital Signage 197 6.2.1. Definitions 197 6.2.2. Fields of application 197 6.2.3. Examples of the messages displayed 198 6.2.4. Digital signage technologies 198 6.2.5. Associated networks 199 6.2.6. Feedback 199 6.2.7. Application in tele-teaching 200 6.2.8. Standardization 200 6.2.9. Commercial aspects 201 6.3. Identification technologies 202 6.3.1. Identification of persons 202 6.3.2. Conventional codes 203 6.3.3. RFID 204 6.3.4. Near Field Communication (NFC) 205 6.3.5. QR Code (Quick Response) and Flash code 205 6.4. Image services 206 6.4.1. Still images 206 6.4.2. Animated images 207 6.4.3. Distribution of videos or movies 209 6.4.4. Videoconferencing 209 6.4.5. Image quality 210 6.5. Conclusion 211 Chapter 7. The internet and the NGN 213 7.1. Creation and principles of NGNs 213 7.1.1. Historical overview 213 7.1.2. General features 214 7.1.3. Founding organizations involved 215 7.1.4. Technical description 217 7.1.5. Addressing on the Internet 217 7.1.6. Internet statistics 219 7.1.7. Management of the Internet 219 7.1.8. The NGNs under study at the ITU 220 7.2. Usual applications on the Internet 222 7.2.1. Original applications 222 7.2.2. Mobile Internet access 225 7.2.3. Online news services 225 7.2.4. Remote payment 228 7.2.5. Online games 231 7.3. Developments currently under way 232 7.3.1. Extension of Web applications 232 7.3.2. Crowd sourcing 236 7.3.3. The personal digital revolution 236 7.3.4. Massive Open Online Courses (MOOC) 236 7.3.5. Technological breakthroughs 238 7.4. Cloud computing 239 7.4.1. Principle of cloud computing 239 7.4.2. Advantages and disadvantages of cloud computing 240 7.4.3. Commercial aspects of cloud computing 241 7.4.4. Critical view of cloud computing 241 7.5. Big Data 242 7.6. The Internet of Things (IoT) and M2M 243 7.6.1. Definitions 243 7.6.2. Intended applications 244 7.6.3. Networks and protocols 245 7.6.4. Research currently under way 246 7.6.5. Weak points of the IoT 247 7.7. Social networks and social media 247 7.7.1. Definitions 247 7.7.2. Examples of social networks 248 7.7.3. Social networks and business 250 7.7.4. Social networks for the local area 252 7.7.5. Fragility of social networks 253 7.7.6. Threats 253 7.8. Principles of charging 255 7.8.1. Fixed-rate contracts or rates based on costs 255 7.8.2. Imbalance in terms of remuneration in the value chain 255 7.8.3. Cost of a terminal and price of applications 257 7.8.4. Profitability of networks 258 7.9. The weaknesses of the NGN/Internet construction 259 7.9.1. Lack of security 259 7.9.2. Variability of QoS 261 7.9.3. Protection of personal data 262 7.9.4. Intellectual property rights on the Internet 262 7.9.5. Lack of an authoritative decision-making body 263 7.9.6. Network neutrality, and Net neutrality 266 7.9.7. The need for a technical readjustment 268 7.9.8. Judgments about the role of the Internet 269 7.10. Where is the NGN heading to? 271 7.10.1. The strategy of the future Internet 271 7.10.2. Internet governance as seen from the outside world 272 7.10.3. Research projects 273 7.10.4. The Internet in developing countries 275 7.10.5. The situation in 2014 276 7.10.6. Scission of the Internet 279 7.11. Conclusion 280 Chapter 8. Choices For Businesses 281 8.1. Analysis of the need for communication 282 8.1.1. Internal communication 282 8.1.2. External communication 282 8.1.3. General recommendations 286 8.1.4. Sociology of telecoms 286 8.2. ICTs in SMEs 288 8.2.1. E-mails 288 8.2.2. Collaborative tools 290 8.2.3. Social networks 290 8.2.4. New digital tools 291 8.2.5. Internet in business 292 8.2.6. Cyber security 292 8.2.7. In search of a metric with which to qualify the digital economy 294 8.3. Technological evolution and associated costs 296 8.3.1. Requirements in terms of data rate 296 8.3.2. Consumer protection 298 8.3.3. Business 3.0 299 8.3.4. Emergencies and technological redundancy 299 8.3.5. The “communication” bill for a company 300 8.4. Security in SMEs 301 8.4.1. Mobile terminals 301 8.4.2. Security of exchanges 302 8.4.3. Passwords and practices to be avoided 303 8.4.4. Terminal takeover 304 8.4.5. USB keys (personal or company property?) 308 8.4.6. Third-party Wi-Fi access 308 8.4.7. Digital security charters 311 8.4.8. VPN and Proxy 311 8.5. Best practices 312 8.5.1. Fragility of NGNs 312 8.5.2. The inevitable transformation of companies to digital 313 8.5.3. Establishment of social networks in business 313 8.5.4. Cloud computing and business 315 8.5.5. Construction of a company Website 315 8.5.6. Mail order selling in the digital age 317 8.5.7. Video for business 319 8.5.8. Management of the company’s information system 321 8.5.9. Network management and management of communication tools 321 8.5.10. Power supply to the terminals 322 8.5.11. Importance of the IT director 323 8.6. References regarding cyber security 324 8.7. A few organizations operating in good security practices 325 8.7.1. Entities with French jurisdiction 325 8.7.2. Entities with international jurisdiction 326 8.8. Conclusion 328 Overview and Conclusions 329 Appendix 343 Glossary 359 Bibliography 367 Index 371