Case Study: Global Medical Technology Company achieves secure, cost-saving wireless implant redesign with Black Duck

Redesigning an Implantable Medical Device Communication Protocol

A global medical-technology leader engaged Black Duck to redesign the communication protocol for a neuro‑implantable device. The firm wanted to remove a costly proximity‑based authentication component in favor of a wireless key negotiation (Diffie‑Hellman) but had no risk‑prioritization strategy; existing threat tools produced over 300 findings, stakeholders were misaligned, and the team could not agree on clear requirements.

Black Duck performed threat modeling—interviewing the team, reviewing designs, and producing a traceability matrix linking assets, threats, attacks, controls and requirements—to identify root causes and prioritize risks (notably battery life, key disclosure, confidentiality and integrity). The focused findings enabled clear, testable requirements and mitigation plans, reduced the volume of issues to a manageable set, clarified the business impact of cost‑saving choices, and accelerated design and implementation with immediately actionable results.