Encryption Application for Protecting PHI (Personal Health Information) – Case Study of Introduction of LIAPP
Today, we will share a case study of introducing ‘mobile security service LIAPP’ to safely protect ‘sensitive health information (PHI: Protected Health Information)’ such as ‘medical records, test results, etc.’
With the development of mobile healthcare services, we can now check not only hospital reservations but also health checkup results, treatment records, and prescriptions through apps. However, did you know that security threats are also rapidly increasing as such sensitive personal health information is digitized?
What is PHI?
PHI is an abbreviation for Protected Health Information, and as the name suggests, it refers to information related to an individual’s health.
For example,
• Medical records
• Health checkup results
• Disease and prescription history
• Medical imaging data
• Insurance claim information
All of these are PHI. Since this information is directly connected to an individual’s privacy, if it is leaked, it can lead to serious damage.
How safe is PHI in the mobile environment?
Many healthcare apps provide in-mobile storage for the convenience of users, but what if data is stored on the device without encryption? There is a possibility that hackers can access it through malicious apps or that information can be leaked through rooted/jailbroken devices. Therefore, we must encrypt and protect PHI data within the app.
Case of applying PHI encryption using LIAPP
Our team recently built a system to safely protect users’ PHI data by applying ‘LIAPP’ to a mobile healthcare app.
LIAPP is an all-in-one mobile security solution that can strengthen in-app security, and is specialized in protecting apps from various threats.
Background of introduction
• It was difficult to respond to the risk of data theft within the app with only existing security features.
• In particular, since medical records, test results, and image data had to be stored within the app for a certain period of time, storage through encryption was essential.
• At the same time, the user experience had to be maintained, so a security solution without performance degradation was needed.
LIAPP's main application points
1. Encryption and obfuscation of important source code
→ We prevented the analysis of the important code of the PHI app through obfuscation and encryption.
In other words, important data is encrypted in the app, and LIAPP protects the encryption logic from being analyzed.
2. Prevention of app forgery and tampering
→ LIAPP detects forgery/tampering in real time while the app is running, and blocks execution in abnormal environments.
3. Detection of rooting and execution restriction
→ We minimized the risk by blocking app execution on rooted devices or restricting access to specific sensitive information.
4. Prevention of debugging and hooking
→ We minimized the possibility of PHI theft by blocking attack attempts using developer tools in advance.
What were the effects after applying LIAPP?
• Users' trust in protecting their personal health information increased.
• We also received excellent evaluations in security inspections and audits.
• The internal audit system was also improved to a structure that detects security issues in advance. What I was most satisfied with was that strong security was implemented without affecting the performance or UX of the app at all.
Now that digital healthcare has become a daily routine, PHI security is not an option but a must.
Especially in an era where sensitive medical information is distributed in real time through mobile devices, a comprehensive protection strategy that combines encryption and app security is important. We will continue to invest heavily in security so that users can use our services with confidence.
Mobile security, you can no longer put it off. Take the first step toward PHI protection with LIAPP. Thank you!
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