UT Dallas Professor Wins Award for Network Security
Dr. Imtiaz Karim receives NSF funding to lead a multi-university project securing next-generation cellular networks.
Updated on Oct. 21, 2026 in Telecommunications
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Dr. Imtiaz Karim of The University of Texas at Dallas has been awarded $307,250 by the National Science Foundation. The grant supports a three-year research collaboration aimed at developing security for quantum-ready, AI-enabled cellular networks.
Why it matters
Next-generation cellular networks introduce significant vulnerabilities as they integrate more AI into critical operations. Furthermore, current postquantum cryptographic methods are often too demanding for the real-time requirements of mobile network environments.
The project will evaluate security protocols on a laboratory 5G test bed to ensure deployability. Researchers are focusing on creating cryptographic solutions that operate within the processing limitations of modern network hardware.
The players
Dr. Imtiaz Karim
He is a researcher at The University of Texas at Dallas who joined the Erik Jonsson School in 2025.
National Science Foundation
It is a United States government agency that supports fundamental research and education in all the non-medical fields of science and engineering.
The University of Texas at Dallas
It is a public research university located in Richardson that hosts the Erik Jonsson School of Engineering and Computer Science.
University of South Florida
It is a major public research university that is participating in the three-university collaboration for network security.
Purdue University
It is a public land-grant research university in Indiana that is contributing to the development of next-generation network security.
The details
The research team, which includes scholars from the University of South Florida and Purdue University, will spend three years testing security technologies on a shared experimental platform. This effort is part of the Verticals-enabling Intelligent Network Systems program.
Timeline
Dr. Imtiaz Karim joined the Erik Jonsson School in 2025.
A major malware attack on SK Telecom Co. occurred in 2025.
The research collaboration will take place over a three-year period beginning in 2026.
The Tech Race
This project represents a critical pivot toward securing infrastructure against the systemic vulnerabilities exposed by the 2025 malware attack on SK Telecom Co. By hardening networks against AI-driven threats, the team aims to establish new benchmarks for 6G security.
The development of secure cellular standards aims to protect the personal data of millions of mobile users from large-scale malware threats. Successful implementation could lead to more stable and private network connections for consumers using next-generation devices.
The takeaway
Securing next-generation cellular networks is essential to prevent costly and widespread data breaches similar to the 2025 SK Telecom incident. Consumers can protect their devices by ensuring software remains updated while researchers work on long-term systemic security improvements.
Further reading
For more information on the evolving landscape of mobile infrastructure, read our Telecommunications section.
Source note: This article includes information reported by News Center.
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