SHIELD-6G

The challenge

The transition from 5G to 6G across Europe introduces a critical strategic challenge: building and maintaining a cybersecurity architecture that can safeguard next-generation digital infrastructure. Because 6G networks will underpin highly sensitive, mission-critical operations, ranging from connected healthcare and autonomous industrial systems to smart manufacturing, maritime connectivity, and secure public communication, any network failure or cyberattack could have devastating consequences. 

Connecting all these essential systems creates many more targets for hackers to exploit. To keep these networks safe and reliable, strong security measures must be built in from the start, long before 6G officially launches. Beyond protecting against cyberattacks, future 6G security frameworks must also ensure trust, service continuity, and operational resilience across critical digital infrastructure.

About the project

To strengthen cybersecurity for Europe’s future 6G networks, a new European research and innovation project, SHIELD‑6G (Scalable, Hybrid, and Intelligent End-to-End Defense for 6G Networks), was launched in June 2026. Over its planned 36-month duration, the project will develop a 6G-native Cyber Threat Intelligence platform designed to detect, analyze, and respond to cyber threats in real time. 

The SHIELD-6G platform aims to deliver high-performance threat detection that identifies both known vulnerabilities and zero-day attacks, significantly cutting incident response times through automated mitigation. To achieve this, the project drives innovation across four core pillars: AI-driven threat detection and response, privacy-preserving federated learning, digital twin security modeling, and explainable AI to ensure transparent, accountable decision-making. The platform's real-world efficacy will be rigorously validated across three critical sectors: healthcare, smart manufacturing, and maritime connectivity. 

The project also explores advanced technologies such as AI-powered security orchestration, trusted cyber threat intelligence sharing, and innovative security testing and compliance mechanisms designed specifically for future 6G environments. These large-scale validation activities will demonstrate how advanced cybersecurity capabilities can protect next-generation connectivity services in environments where reliability, security, and continuous operation are essential.

By strengthening cyber resilience across critical sectors and supporting the development of trustworthy digital infrastructure, SHIELD-6G contributes to Europe's ambition to deploy secure, reliable, and resilient 6G networks.

LMT Group’s role in SHIELD-6G

LMT Group contributes to SHIELD-6G by leading use case elicitation and requirements definition activities that guide the development of AI-driven, privacy-preserving, and secure cybersecurity solutions for future 6G networks. Leveraging its 5G/6G test environment and operational use scenarios, LMT Group tests, integrates, and validates developed security solutions under realistic conditions, helping assess their performance, reliability, and suitability for future deployment.

SHIELD‑6G brings together 19 partners from 10 European countries, including universities, research centers, telecommunications operators, global technology companies, and innovative SMEs. The consortium, coordinated by University College Dublin, represents Ireland, Spain, Finland, France, the Netherlands, Italy, Greece, Latvia, Estonia, and Turkey. The multidisciplinary consortium combines expertise in telecommunications, cybersecurity, artificial intelligence, software engineering, and large-scale network experimentation.

SHIELD‑6G is co-funded by the European Union under Grant Agreement Nr. 101291599, awarded through the Horizon Europe, SNS - Smart Networks and Services Joint Undertaking (HORIZON-JU-SNS-2025-01) in 2025.