The positive effects of IoT in the healthcare industry are undeniable, and by some accounts, staggering. The development of life-changing technology for homes, hospices, healthcare clinics, and hospitals is rampant. IoT in healthcare is a fire that grows uncontrollably, inspiring companies like Philips, best known for personal hygiene, to create an entire healthcare subsidiary dedicated to pioneering new generations of medical sensors.
“Phillips recently created a pillbox that pops open when it’s time to take your meds, and sends a message to, say, a family member or nurse confirming that you’ve taken them.” – The Globe and Mail
Of all of the cutting-edge technologies associated with healthcare, IoT appears to be taking the lead. There’s little wonder why. On the operational side, a recent Accenture Technology study revealed that IoT increases innovation and production, potentially altering the organizational landscape of most companies. In fact, the tiny sensors of IoT are one of the key ingredients in Phillips’ seemingly magic pillbox. They are used not only to determine when to pop the box open, but also who and how to contact a nurse or loved one.
We all know that fitness trackers like the Jawbone and even Apple Watch are everywhere. What most of us often fail to realize is these are forms of health IoT. What is also not commonly known is that not only are these devices measuring heartrates and sleeping patterns but they’re also being integrated with insurance providers for participant discounts. According to a recent article by The Globe and Mail, John Hancock is offering 15 percent off premiums for participants that allow them access to this type of data. And that is happening right now.
The technical definition of IoT is a group of sensors and small devices that have been networked to enable communication between devices, to a network, or to the Internet. If you pay close attention to the definition of IoT, you realize quickly that what the technology really does is create and propagate data that when multiplied by the number of possible sensors becomes potentially massive.
The potential for organizations to quickly or easily become overwhelmed by massive datasets is a foregone conclusion with the maturity of this technology. At the heart of the challenge is the need for organizations to manage the data and extrapolate actionable data, without compromising the delivery of their goods or services.
Password Manager: Wrapping It Up
IoT in Healthcare is leading to the demand for larger networks that will ultimately need to be integrated with a password manager in order to provide seamless and secure access to data. Additionally, password manager could provide access to multiple clusters of IoT networks in the future to produce a platform that is always-on and open to authentication from mobile devices.
Despite the undeniably positive effects of IoT in the healthcare industry, security remains a challenge. The development of life-changing technology for homes, hospices, healthcare clinics, and hospitals is only going to grow, and with it needs to be a better understanding of how solutions like a password manager can help provide the authenticated stability required within IoT, particularly in industries like healthcare.
This Blog was brought to you by Hypersocket and its CEO, Lee David Painter. With over 20 years of industry experience as a pioneer in IT Security, Lee developed the world’s first OpenSource browser-based SSL VPN (SSL-Explorer). Today Lee runs Hypersocket, a leader in virtual private network technology.
