Researchers have developed an add-on system for implantable devices, such as pacemakers, that would prevent unauthorized signals from instructing the implant to deliver lethal doses of medication or electricity, according to a report by Physorg.
Researchers from MIT and the University of Massachusetts said the add-on device is a second transmitter that jams unauthorized signals at the implant's operating frequency, permitting only authorized users to communicate with the implant.
Millions of Americans have implantable medical devices, including pacemakers, defibrillators, brain stimulators and drug pumps. Worldwide, such devices are implanted in 300,000 people every year.
Read the Physorg report on pacemakers.
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