Service-oriented security framework for remote medical services in the internet of things environment

Abstract

Objectives: Remote medical services have been expanding globally, and this is expansion is steadily increasing. It has had many positive effects, including medical access convenience, timeliness of service, and cost reduction. The speed of research and development in remote medical technology has been gradually accelerating. Therefore, it is expected to expand to enable various high-tech information and communications technology (ICT)-based remote medical services. However, the current state lacks an appropriate security framework that can resolve security issues centered on the Internet of things (IoT) environment that will be utilized significantly in telemedicine. Methods: This study developed a medical service-oriented framework for secure remote medical services, possessing flexibility regarding new service and security elements through its service-oriented structure. First, the common architecture of remote medical services is defined. Next medical-oriented security threats and requirements within the IoT environment are identified. Finally, we propose a “service-oriented security framework for remote medical services” based on previous work and requirements for secure remote medical services in the IoT. Results: The proposed framework is a secure framework based on service-oriented cases in the medical environment. A comparative analysis focusing on the security elements (confidentiality, integrity, availability, privacy) was conducted, and the analysis results demonstrate the security of the proposed framework for remote medical services with IoT. Conclusions: The proposed framework is service-oriented structure. It can support dynamic security elements in accordance with demands related to new remote medical services which will be diversely generated in the IoT environment. We anticipate that it will enable secure services to be provided that can guarantee confidentiality, integrity, and availability for all, including patients, non-patients, and medical staff.