Chinese medical devices are in health systems across U.S., and the government and hospitals are worried

CNBC via NBC New York ^ | 2/23/25 | Kevin Williams

[Libloather]

**SNIP**

A popular medical monitor is the latest device produced in China to receive scrutiny for its potential cyber risks.  However, it is not the only health device we should be concerned about. Experts say the proliferation of Chinese health-care devices in the U.S. medical system is a cause for concern across the entire ecosystem.

The Contec CMS8000 is a popular medical monitor that tracks a patient's vital signs.  The device tracks electrocardiograms, heart rate, blood oxygen saturation, non-invasive blood pressure, temperature, and respiration rate.  In recent months, the FDA and the Cybersecurity and Infrastructure Security Agency (CISA) both warned about a "backdoor" in the device, an "easy-to-exploit vulnerability that could allow a bad actor to alter its configuration." 

CISA's research team described "anomalous network traffic" and the backdoor "allowing the device to download and execute unverified remote files" to an IP address not associated with a medical device manufacturer or medical facility but a third-party university — "highly unusual characteristics" that go against generally accepted practices, "especially for medical devices."

"When the function is executed, files on the device are forcibly overwritten, preventing the end customer—such as a hospital—from maintaining awareness of what software is running on the device," CISA wrote.

The warnings says such configuration alteration could lead to, for instance, the monitor saying that a patient's kidneys are malfunctioning or breathing failing, and that could cause medical staff to administer unneeded remedies that could be harmful.

The Contec equipment's vulnerability doesn't surprise medical and IT experts who have warned for years that medical device security is too lax.

[GOPJ]

We’re not going to have a choice. Lucky for us we invented modern capitalism and the Chinese are clueless in that important area...