Wireless Telecommunications Carriers NAICS 517112

May 6, 2026 - Vulnerabilities Discovered in Satellite Communications

• Close to half of the communications beamed from satellites to the ground that the researchers at the University of California San Diego were able to listen in on were not encrypted. This included sensitive data including cellular text messages, voice calls, as well as sensitive military information, data from internal corporate and bank networks, and the in-flight online activity of airline passengers. The researchers said that they used $800 worth of equipment to focus on geosynchronous (GEO) satellites, which orbit the earth at a fixed altitude and position around the equator. "Given that any individual with a clear view of the sky and $800 can set up their own GEO interception station from Earth, one would expect that GEO satellite links carrying sensitive commercial and government network traffic would use standardized link and/or network layer encryption to prevent eavesdroppers," the researchers wrote in a follow-up report.
• US telecom industry capital expenditure (capex) is expected to decrease year over year in 2025, according to Telecom Lead. Major carriers such as AT&T, Verizon, and T-Mobile are adopting more disciplined investment strategies after several years of heavy spending on 5G rollouts and fiber expansion. Telecom operators are now focusing on optimizing their existing infrastructure and achieving higher returns on prior investments.

• Telecommunications industry core products and services are becoming commodities according to professional services firm PWC. Firms have difficulty raising prices while facing a continual need to invest in infrastructure. PWC notes, however, that there are always niches of expansion and opportunities for companies in industries with relatively slow growth. A sweeping reconfiguration of legacy industries will create a greater demand for connectivity and communications services in the coming years, according to PWC. Key megatrends within the telco industry itself are causing a sweeping internal reconfiguration, which is opening up many new opportunities. These include strategic investments in AI, fixed connectivity, and B2B service; working with investors and regulators to create opportunities to optimize market structure; and deploying deals to build scale.
• Wireless telecommunications carrier industry employment decreased slightly and average wages for nonsupervisory employees increased slightly during the first two months of 2026, according to the US Bureau of Labor Statistics (BLS). Wireless telecommunications carriers decreased prices slightly during the first three months of 2026, according to the BLS. Wireless telecommunications carrier sales are forecast to grow at a 3.85% compounded annual rate from 2026 to 2030, slower than the growth of the overall economy, according to Inforum and the Interindustry Economic Research Fund, Inc.