Pacemaker “Cloaking Device” Hopes To Thwart Hackers
By Jonathan Kimak
Months ago I had heard that the modern versions of pacemakers were susceptible to hacker attacks. Modern pacemakers can be modified by doctors using a special remote device that can change the beats per minute of the patient’s heart among other things. This allows patients to undergo fewer operations for adjustments.
The remote nature of the new pacemakers make them possible targets for hackers. At best, the remote attacks would merely steal patient information stored in the pacemaker. At worst it could be tampered with to kill the patient. Millions of people depend on pacemakers to keep their heart beating so the medical community is taking this threat very seriously.
The proposed cloaking device would be an external attachment that the pacemaker owner would wear and would resemble a medic-alert bracelet. The cloaking device would prevent remote access to the pacemaker(and other implanted medical devices). If the person with the pacemaker ever did have trouble the on-site doctor could remove the cloaker and modify the pacemaker as needed.
VIA [ medGadget ]
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