Securing the IoT-enabled smart healthcare system: A PUF-based resource-efficient authentication mechanism

As the Internet of Things (IoT) continues its rapid expansion, cloud computing has become integral to various smart healthcare applications. However, the proliferation of digital health services raises significant concerns regarding security and data privacy, making the protection of sensitive medical information paramount. To effectively tackle these challenges, it is crucial to establish resilient network infrastructure and data storage systems capable of defending against malicious entities and permitting access exclusively to authorized users. This requires the deployment of a robust authentication mechanism, wherein medical IoT devices, users (such as doctors or nurses), and servers undergo registration with a trusted authority. The process entails users retrieving data from the cloud server, while IoT devices collect patient data. Before granting access to data retrieval or storage, the cloud server verifies the authenticity of both the user and the IoT device, ensuring secure and authorized interactions within the system. With millions of interconnected smart medical IoT devices autonomously gathering and analyzing vital patient data, the importance of robust security measures becomes increasingly evident. Standard security protocols are fundamental in fortifying smart healthcare applications against potential threats. To confront these issues, this paper introduces a secure and resource-efficient cloud-enabled authentication mechanism. Through empirical analysis, it is demonstrated that our authentication mechanism effectively reduces computational and communication overheads, thereby improving overall system efficiency. Furthermore, both informal and formal analyses affirm the mechanism's resilience against potential cyberattacks, highlighting its effectiveness in safeguarding smart healthcare applications.