Minimum On-the-node Data Security for the Next-generation Miniaturized Wireless Biomedical Devices

As continuous health monitoring and treatment outside of the traditional clinical environment has become of interest to healthcare providers and governments, the manufacturers of miniaturized wireless biomedical devices have sought to facilitate this idea. Much research has been devoted to smart-and-connected health technologies of various form factors including injectables, implantables, ingestibles, and wearables. Such devices are constrained in physical size, power-consumption budget, storage capacity, and computing power. Yet, they handle sensitive, private information and require trust as they directly affect the health of the patient by means of stimulation and/or drug delivery. In this work, we discuss the role of security as a fundamental component of these devices. We propose a generic layered model to support lightweight and cost-effective implementation of data security and protection mechanisms against possible attacks.