Multi-Access Edge Computing Architecture, Data Security and Privacy: A Review

Multi-Access Edge Computing (MEC) is an extension of cloud computing that aims to provide computation, storage, and networking capabilities at the edge of the network in close proximity to end-users. The MEC architecture supports applications and services that bridge between cloud computing and end-users. The architecture includes devices and systems that are interconnected, layered, and flexibly deployed. As a result of the technological advancements, MEC is facing a myriad of highly sophisticated threats. This paper provides a review of MEC Architecture, use cases, conceptual guidelines for MEC security architecture, security and privacy techniques, and identifies current and future challenges, their implications, and approaches to overcome the challenges. This research examined significant threats, described the MEC architecture, identified the susceptible functional layers, the different categories of threats, and the potential security safeguards. The research recommends that MEC providers should implement multiple layers of security controls to mitigate targeted attacks.