Smiths Medical Medfusion 4000 Wireless Syringe Infusion Pump Vulnerabilities (Update A)
Act Now3.7ICS-CERT ICSMA-17-250-02ASep 7, 2017
Attack VectorNetwork
Auth RequiredNone
ComplexityHigh
User InteractionNone needed
Summary
The Medfusion 4000 Wireless Syringe Infusion Pump contains multiple vulnerabilities in wireless communication and command authentication that allow an attacker on the network to intercept, modify, or inject infusion commands. Affected vulnerabilities include buffer overflow (CWE-120, CWE-125), hardcoded credentials (CWE-798), weak access controls (CWE-284, CWE-260), insecure credentials storage (CWE-259), and improper certificate validation (CWE-295). An attacker could alter drug delivery rates, stop infusions, or cause other unintended pump behavior without authentication.
What this means
What could happen
An attacker with network access to the Medfusion 4000 wireless pump could intercept, modify, or spoof infusion commands, potentially altering drug delivery rates or stopping treatment. This could cause patient harm through incorrect medication dosing or therapy interruption.
Who's at risk
Healthcare facilities using Smiths Medical Medfusion 4000 Wireless Syringe Infusion Pumps in any version (1.1, 1.5, or 1.6) should care about this vulnerability. Infusion pumps are critical life-support equipment in intensive care, oncology, and general ward settings. Any disruption or malfunction can directly impact patient safety during drug delivery.
How it could be exploited
An attacker on the same network or with wireless range of the device could intercept unencrypted or weakly encrypted communications between the pump and the wireless network. By spoofing the pump or the control station, the attacker could send forged infusion commands (rate changes, stop/start) without authentication. The device trusts these commands and executes them directly on the infusion mechanism.
Prerequisites
- Network access to the Medfusion 4000 device (wired or wireless)
- Line-of-sight or wireless range to the device
- Knowledge of the wireless protocol or command structure
- Ability to capture or inject network traffic
Remotely exploitable over networkLow authentication complexityWeak encryption or default wireless settingsDirect impact on safety-critical medical deviceHigh EPSS score (25.8%)No patch available for versions 1.1 and 1.5Medical device end-of-life considerations
Exploitability
High exploit probability (EPSS 25.8%)
Affected products (3)
3 with fix
ProductAffected VersionsFix Status
Medfusion 4000 Wireless Syringe Infusion Pump:1.11.6.1
Medfusion 4000 Wireless Syringe Infusion Pump:1.61.6.1
Medfusion 4000 Wireless Syringe Infusion Pump:1.51.6.1
Remediation & Mitigation
0/5
Schedule — requires maintenance window
0/2Patching may require device reboot — plan for process interruption
HOTFIXUpdate Medfusion 4000 pump to firmware version 1.6.1 or later to mitigate known vulnerabilities
HARDENINGRestrict wireless access to the pump to authorized control stations using MAC address filtering or network access controls
Long-term hardening
0/3HARDENINGSegment the infusion pump network from general hospital IT networks using a dedicated VLAN or isolated wireless network
HARDENINGImplement wireless encryption (WPA2 or better) on the network segment where the pump communicates
HARDENINGMonitor the pump network for unauthorized devices or unexpected command traffic
CVEs (8)
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