LTE-M (LTE for Machines (Cat-M1))

Also known as: Cat-M1, LTE Cat-M, LTE for Machines

LTE-M is a 3GPP LPWA variant of LTE (UE category M1 in Release 13, M2 in Release 14) that supports up to ~1 Mbit/s, VoLTE, mobility, and power-saving features (PSM, eDRX) suitable for battery-powered IoT devices with more capability than NB-IoT. It reuses LTE/EPC and 5GC security and NAS, and is widely deployed for asset tracking, wearables and connected metering.

Categories: Protocols and StandardsIoT

LTE-M in context

Telecom security is written into standards from 3GPP, GSMA, ETSI, IETF and ITU-T. Understanding which body owns which specification, and how they interlock, is essential for both design and audit work.

Cellular IoT — NB-IoT, LTE-M and 5G mMTC — brings billions of devices with weak identities and long field lifetimes into operator networks, extending signaling attack surface at scale.

To place LTE-M in the wider telecom-security picture, review CSFB, SM-SR, mMTC, 3G, 3GPP and 4G — each entry cross-references back to this page so you can walk the topic in either direction.

Related terms

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Browse the full TelcoSec Glossary, the Ultimate Guide to Mobile Network Security, or the P1 Arsenal of telecom-security tools.