All research

This white paper, using evidence from a GSMA Intelligence survey of operators in Asia Pacific, explains why traditional perimeter-based security is no longer enough and what operators need to do to build a more resilient, architecture-led approach. It covers how AI is changing the threat landscape; why expanding attack surfaces require stronger governance; and how native security, depth defence, dual security operation centre (SOC) operations and AI-enabled tools can help operators protect critical networks.

As 5G becomes the foundation of Qatar’s digital economy, the importance of securing its networks extends beyond consumer protection to national security and economic stability. This is the second report in a two-part series exploring how Qatar can strengthen cybersecurity resilience in a rapidly evolving 5G landscape. It presents a national 5G threat model and threat matrix designed to help operators and policymakers translate strategic priorities into actionable security measures.

Cybersecurity is a shared responsibility, requiring operators to adopt a holistic approach that integrates technology, personnel and processes. To evaluate the cybersecurity governance and strategies of operators, GSMA Intelligence undertook a global survey involving 100 operators worldwide. This report provides an overview of the cybersecurity governance and strategies of operators in Asia Pacific.

Global Mobile Trends 2026 highlights the opportunities and innovations ahead, as well as the challenges facing the mobile industry and beyond. Covering topics including AI, 5G, autonomous networks, devices, security, quantum, satellites, energy innovation and eSIM, the report focuses on what matters in 2026 and the implications for the industry. The latest edition of Global Mobile Trends delivers expert insights into the key trends that will define the mobile ecosystem in 2026 and beyond. Backed by GSMA Intelligence’s industry-leading research and data, the report provides an authoritative look at the forces shaping the next wave of connectivity and innovation.

Malaysia is emerging as one of Southeast Asia’s most strategically important digital economies, underpinned by strong government support, rising enterprise technology investment and one of the region’s most advanced 5G rollouts. 5G adoption in Malaysia now at around 50% of the mobile customer base, meaning the country has the infrastructure underpinning to drive enterprise transformation.

GSMA Intelligence's Chart of the Month is a visual way of telling an important story in the mobile and broader tech ecosystem. From the shape and size of markets to trends in consumer behaviour, we aim to provide food for thought through informative visuals designed to bring colour and clarity to complex issues facing the industry. This edition looks at capex trends among big tech companies compared to telecoms operators.

Over the last two years the rise of quantum technologies has flown slightly below the radar, crowded out by the hype of AI. But this should not diminish the implications of quantum technologies for a range of businesses, including telecoms operators. Quantum technologies can provide powerful benefits, including enhanced network security and efficiency. In this report we focus on the strategic implications of quantum technology deployments and the risks of not taking action.

While telecoms networks, data centres and devices have their own carbon footprints, their systemic value lies in the ability to make energy-intensive sectors more efficient, more electrified and better optimised. This report looks beyond headline efficiency gains to capture the net impact of ICT. It assesses the net ICT enablement effect across five major emitting sectors: manufacturing, transportation, energy & power, buildings and agriculture.

The benefits of quantum computing come from the order-of-magnitude increase in computational power compared to conventional computers. This enables a range of use cases from predictive analytics to pharmaceutical simulations. However, there are also risks, primarily related to security vulnerabilities. Overall, we estimate around 8% of IoT devices currently in active use are quantum safe. Conversely, over 90% (i.e. nearly all) of IoT devices are exposed. The exposure risk for telcos comes at multiple levels, including networks, billing systems, consumer devices and IoT. The focus in this report is on the IoT dimension because it represents the largest universe of devices, is highly disparate and is particularly open to security risks due to the ageing nature of many assets deployed today.

Over the past few years, AI has started to transform industries across Europe and around the world. However, alongside the positive impact of AI-driven innovation has been a wave of new, sophisticated and unpredictable cyberthreats.

As 5G becomes the foundation of Qatar's digital economy (powering finance, e-government, smart transport and critical infrastructure), the importance of securing networks extends beyond consumer protection to national security and economic stability.

This report marks GSMA Intelligence’s second comprehensive assessment of cybersecurity risks facing telecoms organisations. It identifies the most significant cyberthreats currently impacting telcos worldwide, how the threat landscape and industry readiness have shifted over the past year, and the strategies and tools that operators are adopting to strengthen their defences. Alongside headline data points, the report highlights key best practices and actionable recommendations that can help further enhance security measures across the industry.

GSMA Intelligence has benchmarked regulatory readiness for connected vehicles across 15 markets, using key indicators such as the presence of V2X policies and spectrum allocation for safety and non-safety ITS applications. The assessment reveals an average index score of 84 and a fragmented landscape with different levels of readiness for connected-vehicles deployment. Despite the promising opportunities, significant challenges remain, including those related to connectivity technologies, spectrum allocation, safety, privacy and security. Addressing these issues will require a number of regulatory frameworks to be developed and refined.

Commercial drone deployment at scale would allow drones to seamlessly integrate into our daily activities and transform various industries, adding economic growth. However, achieving this requires a supportive regulatory framework. GSMA Intelligence assessed drone regulatory readiness and spectrum availability across 13 countries in Asia Pacific, Europe and North America. The readiness level of each country varies based on several indicators, including the availability of licensed mobile spectrum. The realisation of the drone opportunity will depend on the ability of countries to enable a supportive regulatory environment.

The security threat landscape across telecoms and the broader technology industry continues to evolve at a rapid pace. This report, focused on Europe, is the last in a five-part series. The series aims to evaluate the threat landscape for telecoms operators; track where and why things have changed in the threat landscape for better or worse; discuss innovation and best practice in solutions to mitigate or repel threats; and examine potential future scenarios and how to get ahead of the curve.

The security threat landscape across telecoms and the broader technology industry continues to evolve at a rapid pace. This report series aims to evaluate the threat landscape for telecoms operators; track where and why things have changed in the threat landscape for better or worse; discuss innovation and best practice in solutions to mitigate or repel threats; and examine potential future scenarios and how to get ahead of the curve.

Solutions and policy remedies to the challenge of decarbonisation are urgent considering the timelines and milestones ahead for net zero. This research presents the state of play and outlook for renewables. It outlines the long-term benefits to decarbonisation that such an energy transition offers.

The security threat landscape across telecoms and the broader technology industry continues to evolve at a rapid pace. This is the third report in a five-part series. The series aims to evaluate the threat landscape for telecoms operators; track where and why things have changed in the threat landscape for better or worse; discuss innovation and best practice in solutions to mitigate or repel threats; and examine potential future scenarios and how to get ahead of the curve.

With slow ARPU growth in the connectivity business, revenue diversification remains an imperative for operators. As demand expands for solutions across a range of technology areas (cloud, edge, IoT, security), the B2B segment offers significant growth opportunities.