The American pharmaceutical group Johnson & Johnson is alerting the American and Canadian population to a risk of piracy of their insulin pumps. In question, the Animas OneTouch Ping model. 114,000 consumers would be affected.
Johnson & Johnson warns sick people despite low risk
The insulin pump is a blood sugar control system, used to treat type 1 diabetes. Discreet, it injects small doses of insulin throughout the day and causes fewer complications than regular doses.
“The probability of an intrusion into the One Touch Ping system is very low,” explains J&J in letters sent Monday to doctors and nearly 114,000 users in the United States and Canada. This information was revealed by the Reuters news agency.
Indeed, it would be possible that the computer chip inserted in this pump is hacked, which would make it possible to program a dose of insulin greater than what is prescribed.
But, in order to be able to modify the insulin dosage, the cyber-hacker would have to be less than 800 meters from the patient and the pump and also have some technical expertise and sophisticated equipment.
In terms of precaution, however, the group suggests to its users not to hesitate to turn off their pump.
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