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Germany’s KIM Health Messaging Found Vulnerable to Sender Spoofing as Gematik Rolls Out Hotfixes

Clinics must install new updates before protections take effect.

Overview

  • Investigations by NDR and Süddeutsche Zeitung reported that KIM’s security assurances were not fully met over years of use.
  • Research presented at the Chaos Communication Congress showed KIM signatures confirm system delivery rather than true sender identity, allowing address spoofing.
  • The researcher also reported that messages could be decrypted in some setups and that a few misconfigured modules were reachable from the internet.
  • Gematik issued hotfixes to close the most serious gaps and said additional checks will target deceptive account names.
  • Germany’s BSI assessed immediate patient danger as unlikely, yet updates must be installed by countless practices and some clinicians have reverted to less secure faxes and couriers.