Secure medical digital libraries

Abstract

In this paper, a secure medical digital library is presented. It is based on the CORBA specifications for distributed systems. The described approach relies on a three-tier architecture. Interaction between the medical digital library and its users is achieved through a Web server. The choice of employing Web technology for the dissemination of medical data has many advantages compared to older approaches, but also poses extra requirements that need to be fulfilled. Thus, special attention is paid to the distinguished nature of such medical data, whose integrity and confidentiality should be preserved at all costs. This is achieved through the employment of Trusted Third Parties (TTP) technology for the support of the required security services. Additionally, the proposed digital library employs smartcards for the management of the various security tokens that are used from the above services.