Security Threats among DICOM Imaging Communications in Public Networks

Picture archiving and communication systems (PACS) require high-speed networks to transmit large image files between components. Image-data transmission from one site to another through public network is usually characterized in term of privacy, authenticity, and integrity. However, public network’s security issues had always been the significant problems. Recent years, IPv6 brings significant improvements in mechanisms for assuring a higher level of security and confidentiality of the transmitted information. Thus, it is still necessary to take care of some particular aspects. In this paper, we first analyzes how actual security threats and different types of attacks affect IPv6 networks while transmitting Digital Imaging and Communications in Medicine (DICOM) files through the public Internet. Second, illustrate some shortcomings of IPv6 and IPv6’s traffic loads. Finally, some possible solutions against a number of security threats in IPv6 DICOM files transmitting networks have been given.