$15 Million Singapore-London Partnership to Stop Growing Cybersecurity Challenges in Healthcare in APAC
An AS$20 million grant from the National Research Foundation, Singapore (NRF) has been awarded to Nanyang Technological University, Singapore and Imperial College London to develop ways to better protect health data and wearable devices.
Imperial’s recently opened overseas research centre, Imperial Global: Singapore, is working with NTU Singapore researchers on the IN-CYPHER program “to address existing security challenges and to protect emerging sensor technologies – and their data – from compromise,” according to a press statement . . The goal is ultimately to position Singapore as a “global leader in healthcare cybersecurity and healthcare AI.”
“Data and AI offer great potential to improve healthcare around the world, but the rapid adoption of technology comes with risks and challenges. As we integrate more data and technology to reach the era of truly personalized healthcare, we increase both the ‘attack surface’ for devices, and the risk of sensitive data leakage,” said Imperial Professor Anil Anthony Bharath, who works with Professor Liu Yang from NTU Singapore leads the IN-CYPHER program.
The four-year grant will support research believed to have applications in a wide range of medical devices, including continuous glucose monitors, smart electronic skin patches and activity monitors.
THE GREATER CONTEXT
More and more medical devices are being connected to hospital and home networks and to the Internet. For example, in Singapore’s public healthcare facilities, approximately 15% or more than 16,000 medical devices have internet connectivity. While this growing connectivity allows for better patient monitoring inside and outside the hospital, it also poses cybersecurity risks, compromising patients’ personal and medical data and disrupting treatment protocols and hospital operations.
To increase the cybersecurity level of the medical devices available in the country, the Cyber Security Agency of Singapore released the Cybersecurity Labeling Scheme for Medical Devices last year. The scheme is currently voluntary and encourages manufacturers to take a security-by-design approach to making their products. It also helps healthcare providers and consumers make informed purchasing decisions by being able to identify products based on their cybersecurity provisions.
Interestingly, a recent report from Asia Pacific Medical Technology Association and LEK Consulting, which examined the cybersecurity landscape in the Asia Pacific region, suggested that there is a tailor-made assessment of medical devices for remote care based on their risk level instead of a general assessment. This is because network-connected devices are at greater risk of data leakage than disconnected devices. “Therefore, for medical devices with lower risk levels, less stringent assessment processes could be applied to ensure sufficient innovation and competition in the remote care medical device market,” the report said.
The report also noted that the region’s existing cybersecurity frameworks are not fit for purpose for remote care as data transfer policies remain shaky. It highlighted the urgent need for a “targeted approach” in aligning these cybersecurity frameworks to support remote care management to better mitigate the risks of cyber incidents and protect patient data.
As healthcare systems increasingly expose themselves to cybersecurity threats due to their increasing integration and dependence on medical devices, the medical device cybersecurity market is expected to become more lucrative and expected to be worthwhile. $1.1 billion by 2027with a CAGR of 12% from 2022.
Meanwhile, IN-CYPHER is Imperial Global: Singapore’s first research program, which aims to help scientists “rapidly scale” new scientific breakthroughs and technology for further commercialization in Southeast Asia.
Located on the NRF Campus for Research Excellence and Technological Enterprise, the center builds on Imperial and NTU Singapore’s long-standing collaboration: they established the Lee Kong Chian School of Medicine in 2010 and the virtual NTU-Imperial Health, Sustainability, and Technology Hub in 2022.
Imperial’s academic ties also extend beyond NTU Singapore; it has also collaborated with Singapore’s National Center for Infectious Diseases on pandemic preparedness and response.