While the full text is typically restricted to GSMA members, technical overviews and summaries of its security recommendations are available through specialist telecom security providers like SecurityGen and Velona Systems .

The rapid proliferation of mobile devices and the increasing reliance on mobile services have created a pressing need for secure authentication mechanisms. Traditional password-based authentication methods are no longer sufficient, as they are vulnerable to various types of attacks, such as phishing, brute-force attacks, and password cracking. Moreover, the rise of mobile commerce, online banking, and other sensitive transactions has heightened the risk of identity theft and financial loss.

As the world transitions to 5G and beyond, the importance of SIP—and by extension, FS.38—will only grow. Voice over 5G (VoNR/Vo5G) continues to rely on the IP Multimedia Subsystem (IMS) and the SIP protocol for call establishment and management. The lessons learned and security frameworks established for securing VoLTE and SIP networks are directly applicable to their 5G counterparts.

: Because telecom environments run multi-generation architectures simultaneously, FS.38 functions seamlessly alongside other GSMA frameworks. It complements documents like GSMA FS.20 (GPRS Tunnelling Protocol Security) and GSMA FS.31 (Baseline Security Controls), providing complete visibility into signaling and data paths.

It is a pragmatic, carrier-grade blueprint for the distributed edge , but it is not a plug-and-play protocol. It is an architecture blueprint for mutualizing assets.

: Flooding the network so no one can make calls.

SIP is the signaling protocol used for initiating, maintaining, and terminating real-time sessions that include voice, video, and messaging. Historically, telecommunications security relied on closed, proprietary systems. Today’s SIP-based systems often run on open, commodity hardware and standard IP protocols, making them susceptible to classic internet-borne threats like: