Officials at the Cybersecurity and Infrastructure Security Agency summit said security threats associated with 5G technology could require the involvement of the U.S. government, Federal Times reported Friday.
Christopher Krebs, CISA director and a 2019 Wash100 Award winner, said the lack of alternatives for smaller countries in need of 5G components presents an opportunity for the U.S. and its allies to come up with technology platforms to lead the 5G marketplace, which is dominated by foreign companies like Huawei.
Sen. Mark Warner, also a 2019 Wash100 Award recipient, said the government could play a role in helping develop alternatives.
“It will require active engagement of our government with one or more vendors to make sure we can say that … here’s our alternative and here’s how you can get it at, maybe not exactly the same price point as Huawei, but here’s where it’s not going to be twice as expensive,†Warner said.
