Securing mobile networks is securing nations in the AI era: Huawei’s Sultan Mahmood Malik

Doha, Qatar: As global industry leaders convene on the sidelines of MWC Doha 2025, the accelerating convergence of 5G, cloud computing, and artificial...

Doha, Qatar: As global industry leaders convene on the sidelines of MWC Doha 2025, the accelerating convergence of 5G, cloud computing, and artificial intelligence continues to reshape the cybersecurity landscape for national infrastructures. With mobile networks now serving as critical pillars for digital economies, ensuring their resilience has become an urgent strategic priority for governments and operators worldwide.

In this exclusive interview—conducted during MWC Doha 2025—Sultan Mahmood Malik, Chief Security Officer for Huawei Gulf North, offers an in-depth look at the rising cyber threats facing the telecom sector, Huawei’s long-term security strategy, and the importance of national initiatives designed to strengthen mobile network protection in an era of AI-driven attacks.

1. Specially in the context of Mobile World Congress, what are the major security threats and challenges being faced by mobile networks—especially in the AI era?

Mobile networks today form the backbone of national digital economies. As we adopt 5G, cloud, and AI-driven services, mobile networks are considered critical national infrastructure—powering everything from transportation and finance to healthcare and government services. Because of this, the security of mobile networks is effectively the security of the nation.

We are now seeing cyberattacks increase at an unprecedented rate. Threat actors are becoming more sophisticated, leveraging automation, AI-generated attacks, and the exploitation of complex network architectures. Some of the major threats include multilayered distributed denial-of-service (DDoS) attacks, which not only cause service degradation or interruptions but also serve as cover for sensitive data exfiltration and ransomware infiltration. In 2025 alone, we have seen numerous incidents across the world that caused devastating results for telcos and the surrounding economic ecosystem.