Device manufactures strive to create revolutionary technology for this ever-evolving world. As the concept of the Internet of Things (IoT) has created a growing need for connected devices, various industries have coined their own terminology that represents this concept within their own specific vertical.

Forbes predicts the IoT market will double by 2021 and reach $520B.¹ The healthcare industry has been slower to adopt Internet of Things technologies than other industries; however, the Internet of Medical Things (IoMT) is poised to transform how we keep people safe and healthy especially as the demand for solutions to lower healthcare costs increase in the coming years.² One large concern when planning to develop an IoMT device is the risk of a breach in privacy and security surrounding patient data; however, the benefits could largely outweigh the potential dangers.

Obtaining data that would otherwise be very difficult to collect is one of the largest benefits of connected systems. Data is the key to improving patient care and medical advancements. Examples of IoMT include remote patient monitoring of people with chronic or long-term conditions; tracking patient medication orders and the location of patients admitted to hospitals; and patients’ wearable mobile health devices, which can send information to caregivers. Infusion pumps that connect to analytics dashboards and hospital beds rigged with sensors that measure patients’ vital signs are medical devices that can be converted to or deployed as IoMT technology.³

Real-time data is the key differentiator from the situation today. Allowing doctors, patients, and payers to view necessary information on demand would change the industry as we know it. Waiting for data to arrive is an inconvenient, less efficient, costly barrier to better healthcare and ultimately a better quality of life. With roughly 50% of the world’s installed medical devices and 90% of the devices introduced in the last year having the ability to connect to a larger network, we are nearing a monumental shift in healthcare.⁴

As we begin to feel this shift in healthcare, how can device manufacturers ensure their connected systems will not fail? Precise engineering and developing specific requirements surrounding the system’s security will largely impact the device’s success. Build or design security into your system from the start, do not wait until the device has been developed to integrate security measures. Utilize industry- proven authentication and security measures on your device and backend systems.

Security is largely discussed at the web-level rather than device-level. Applying security to an embedded device will not be the same as a web-application. You will not have the same off-the-shelf resources and security packages that are commercially available. Here are a few tips to ensure good coding practices are utilized, therefore closing the system off to potential attacks:

• Minimize your attack surface to lessen the chance of your device becoming a target.

• Thoroughly consider user roles and build access control into the system. Do not give the same permissions to each user. Assign various roles in which offer different levels of control appropriate to each stakeholder.

• Consider ramifications when the need arises to update your device. Will updates require physical upgrades from the field or can they be performed remotely? Stay up-to-date on the technology embedded in the device and periodically review to ensure their continued security.

Precision Systems, Inc. (PSI) can assist you in developing a secure IoMT device of which cannot risk failure.  Contact us to learn how we can help you make your IoMT device secure.  info@psi-software.com | 215-672-1860

Sources:

¹ https://www.forbes.com/sites/louiscolumbus/2018/08/16/iot-market-predicted-to-double-by-2021-reaching-520b/#6a36e76d1f94

² https://www.forbes.com/sites/bernardmarr/2018/01/25/why-the-internet-of-medical-things-iomt-will-start-to-transform-healthcare-in-2018/#16dd09c34a3c

³ https://internetofthingsagenda.techtarget.com/definition/IoMT-Internet-of-Medical-Things

⁴ https://www.mddionline.com/what-could-total-connectivity-mean-medtech-and-healthcare