CVE-2020-12048 : Security Advisory and Response

The Baxter Phoenix Hemodialysis Delivery System SW 3.36 and 3.40 is vulnerable to a cleartext transmission of sensitive data issue, potentially exposing treatment and prescription data to attackers.

Understanding CVE-2020-12048

This CVE involves a lack of data-in-transit encryption in the Phoenix Hemodialysis system, allowing unauthorized access to sensitive information.

What is CVE-2020-12048?

The vulnerability in the Phoenix Hemodialysis Delivery System SW 3.36 and 3.40 enables attackers on the network to intercept treatment and prescription data transmitted between the Phoenix system and the Exalis dialysis data management tool.

The Impact of CVE-2020-12048

The lack of encryption exposes sensitive patient data, compromising confidentiality and potentially leading to unauthorized access and misuse of medical information.

Technical Details of CVE-2020-12048

This section provides specific technical details about the vulnerability.

Vulnerability Description

The Phoenix Hemodialysis Delivery System SW 3.36 and 3.40 does not implement data-in-transit encryption, allowing attackers to eavesdrop on sensitive data transmissions.

Affected Systems and Versions

Product: Baxter Phoenix Hemodialysis Delivery System
Versions: Phoenix Hemodialysis Delivery System SW 3.36 and 3.40

Exploitation Mechanism

Attackers with network access can intercept and view treatment and prescription data exchanged between the Phoenix system and the Exalis dialysis data management tool.

Mitigation and Prevention

Protecting systems from this vulnerability requires immediate actions and long-term security practices.

Immediate Steps to Take

Implement network segmentation to restrict access to sensitive data transmissions.
Use secure communication protocols like TLS/SSL for data encryption.

Long-Term Security Practices

Regularly update and patch the Phoenix Hemodialysis system to address security vulnerabilities.
Conduct security assessments and penetration testing to identify and remediate potential weaknesses.
Train staff on data security best practices to prevent unauthorized access.
Monitor network traffic for any suspicious activities that may indicate data interception.

Patching and Updates

Ensure that the Phoenix Hemodialysis system is updated with the latest security patches and firmware releases to mitigate the cleartext data transmission vulnerability.