Attribute-based deterministic access control mechanism (AB-DACM) for securing communication in internet of smart health care things

Abstract

Internet of Things (IoT) envisages the idea of ubiquitous inter-connectivity, and aims at building smart blocks of next generation technologies by integrating physical world with the Internet. Concepts of IoT are making a huge impact in health sector by facilitating remote medical services including health monitoring, rescue in emergency situations, and so forth. Devices for imaging and diagnosis when embedded with sensors and actuators, build the core of IoT-enabled health care. However, this new paradigm of health care comes along with various security and privacy challenges, such as unauthorized access, that may lead to serious consequences if not handled appropriately. This paper presents an Attribute Based Deterministic Access Control Mechanism (AB-DACM) explicitly designed to ensure secure remote access in medical organisations using Attribute Based Access Control (ABAC) model and Elliptic Curve Cryptography (ECC). Moreover, the proposed authorisation algorithm is validated and verified using Access Control Policy Testing (ACPT) tool.