The Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI) recently published a public service announcement to raise awareness about cybercrime attacks against the "Internet of Things," which refers to any object or device that connects to the Internet to send or receive data. Of particular interest at WCMC are medical devices, such as wireless heart monitors, insulin dispensers, or wearable fitness devices that may store, send, or receive protected health information. ITS Security is currently assessing and evaluating risks associated with these devices to ensure patient safety. We are already taking action to help mitigate the risk of attack.
As a reminder, it's important to secure your home-networked devices, too, including wireless routers. The ITS Security team recently published a best practices document for securing personal devices. Check out this document for some tips and suggestions!
If you or your department are using portable medical devices that store or transmit confidential patient data and have concerns or would like a security review, please do not hesitate to contact ITS Security at its-security@med.cornell.edu.
To review the full FBI alert, please click here.