Medical devices typically last a decade or longer, a functional lifespan that places them among the most post-quantum, cryptographically vulnerable technologies in healthcare, said Joern Lubadel, global head of product security at B. Braun, a German-based medical device and healthcare products maker.
“Medical devices are a huge investment and they can sometimes run five or even 20 years or over 25 years,” Lubadel said in an interview with Information Security Media Group during the HIMSS 2026 conference in Las Vegas, Nevada.
“These devices heavily rely on classical encryption, like RSA or ECC. The computing power and ability to update them is not as simple as a normal computer, because you can’t just take all these products off the market,” he said.
To get a stronger grip on the kinds of future risk these medical devices face in a post-quantum world, it’s critical that healthcare delivery organizations carefully assess their inventory, including compiling a cryptographic bill of materials, he said. “This can be started now. There’s no reason you shouldn’t have that,” he said.
In the interview (see audio link below photo), Lubadel also discussed:
- Top potential post-quantum worries for healthcare sector entities;
- How artificial intelligence fits into the mix of post-quantum risk challenges, including those involving medical devices;
- The potential risks posed by emerging and evolving medical devices technologies such as implantable products.
Lubadel is an experienced professional in healthcare IT and product IT security, with over 25 years of working across medical technology and regulatory environments. As global head of product security at B. Braun, he supports security by design throughout the product lifecycle – helping teams build safe, compliant and scalable solutions. He focuses on translating current cybersecurity concerns and technical risks into practical regulatory and engineering strategies. Lubadel contributes to international working groups and standards bodies, including ISO, DIN and contributes his time to industry associations like MedTech Europe, APACMed and others.