Hackers remote kill invading pacemaker

Experiments show that: the design of this sci-fi drama entirely feasible

"Homeland Security" stills.

Wireless medical systems.

Pacemaker.

Jack is impersonating how to hack an insulin pump station.

In this year's hot drama "Homeland Security" (Homeland), the hero of the vice president told the serial number of the pacemaker terrorists, vice president allowed to control pacemaker, really "Faraway kills . " It sounds like science fiction, but in the network and hackers in the world, is entirely feasible. Vice President Walden's death was "Homeland Security" in the second quarter a plot climax --- in tight security measures within the U.S. Naval Observatory in Washington, Walden "heart" sudden: he grabbed his chest, can not breathe, can not call a doctor, and finally died in his office.
It turned out that in this painstaking plot, the terrorists through the actor Brody (Brody) won the vice presidential pacemaker unique device number. A pacemaker is a medical device, typically used for those patients suffering from slow arrhythmia therapy. At the onset, the patient's heartbeat suddenly slowed down, such as jumping down to about 30 per minute, which would seriously threaten the safety of their lives. The pacemaker is initially linked in vitro by a sheet attached to the chest electrode role; or implanted electrodes with a fine needle into the skin, in vitro via a wire battery box.

As technology advances, today's pacemakers are also more compact and more powerful. In the decade 1992-2002, the United States alone, more than 2.6 million cardiac pacemakers and defibrillators are implanted in the patient.
 
 Murderer hacker intrusion pacemaker


 Vice-President's death, a hacker living in Beirut, Lebanon, thousands of miles away to take anyone's life like science fiction; But in the network and hackers of the world, it is entirely feasible.


 "Having wireless connectivity will face medical devices and smart phones, laptops, like cyber attacks." Specialized medical software hacker Brad Smith said: "hackers only need to consult the records of medical devices, you will find worms and how rampant the virus. "According to his research, the easiest wireless intrusion by hackers medical device is a pacemaker and intravenous pumps.


 This year in May, the U.S. Department of Homeland Security issued a report, citing a study by the University of Massachusetts, on the implantable cardioverter defibrillator (ICD), pacemakers and other implantable therapeutic use of equipment made warning.


 Although so far, has not yet appeared because such hacker attacks caused deaths. But from a technical point of view, if there is a malicious person to attack others pacemakers and other medical electronic equipment caused by dead approach to such attacks would be leaving no trace, can not be detected.

 Remote Kill diabetes insulin pump
 August 2011, in Las Vegas hacker seminar "Black Hat", from McAfee's security engineer Jay Radcliffe demonstrated an attack in diabetic patients using the Internet to commit murder in scary stories.

 2011 years ago, the 22-year-old Radcliffe was diagnosed with diabetes and start using insulin pumps. Syringe pump at a certain dose of insulin to the patient continued subcutaneous bolus injection, so that patients maintain stable blood sugar throughout the day. The new insulin pump with wireless capability, the doctors through a wireless network access to patient health status data, and adjust the amount of insulin injections.

 A year ago, Radcliffe began testing its own insulin pump is easy to be hacked. He merely modified the program a serial number, the insulin pump was successfully controlled. He discovered that he not only used insulin pumps can be remotely controlled, but also at any time off.

 Live at Black Hat, Radcliffe via wireless devices and their laptops, the success of 46 meters from the remote control an automatic syringe pump. If a diabetic patient is wearing this syringe pump operator can command it to frequent, large doses of the wearer's body to the injection of insulin, making him because of low blood sugar coma and even death.

 This discovery shocked the audience, Radcliffe himself said: "insulin pump vulnerability was broken, which means in the future we want to protect is not a mere $ 200 on the credit card, but a person's life," "you have mastered control of equipment, it means your body's master control of chemical substances. "

 The medical community is pushing back the commercialization of the "shield" 
Of course, there are anti-hacker hackers in the wireless medical field as well.
 
Recently, the Massachusetts Institute of Technology and the University of Massachusetts, Amherst College researchers jointly developed is called a "shield" (the shield) anti-hacking devices. "Hackers constantly in trying to find loopholes in these devices, sooner or later they will be large-scale offensive." Amherst College Associate Professor Department of Computer Science Fu Jiawei said: "Although this day has not come, but we must change in risk to solve the problem before the actual threat. "
 
Researchers Improve "shield" design, making it the implantable medical data between the instrument and transfer station. It also accepts invasive implantable devices and signals, but only via a secure channel will implant instrument signal to the doctor released. So, in the "shield" to prevent signal intrusion, the doctor can still download the data and confirm the adjustment.

"Shield" in the recent meeting of the American Association for data communication computer professional group (SIGCOMM) publish annual exchange meeting. Prototype looks like a laptop-sized, it is very cumbersome. But it can be miniaturized to the same wear as necklaces or bracelets.
 
Wireless medical a better health insurance system?
Imagine a world in which: note that you should go to your medicine cabinet continued prescription drugs, and the call for an appointment with you; your implanted under the skin of a sensor detects the accumulation of fluid in your lungs, then remind your doctor; You doctor which determines your heart prescription needs to be adjusted, and then contact a pharmacist to change your dosage. Meanwhile, you toilet sensors confirm your body has adapted well to other drugs, but there are signs that you may be at the edge of diabetes. Your doctor understand these readings and your family history, it is recommended you change your eating habits. In view of this, your body weight in the bathroom you enter a weight loss goal, and begin to give you a regular progress updates. Medical examination not only once a year thing, it happens every day, in your daily life at the same time.

These predicted by Joseph Smith, he is an American Harvest wireless medical institute's chief medical and scientific leader, still at Johns Hopkins University, Harvard University and the U.S. Defense Advanced Research Projects Agency as a consultant in a variety of projects , currently engaged in implantable pacemakers and defibrillators wireless technology research.

He believes that the health care system will be a technological reforms. Today, wireless connectivity, personal mobile devices, ubiquitous sensing technology, social networking, and data analysis techniques have been very mature enough to make wireless medical reality. Moreover, the reduction of the heavy burden of health care as it is now the desire has never been so intense. Currently, the new equipment has to make diabetes and chronic heart failure and other diseases in addition to the doctor's office to get close monitoring, tracking chronic kidney disease and a variety of lung diseases tool will also follow. Eventually, most of the health care services will not occur until the occasional doctor, but in the home, car and workplace anywhere.