BioSaFe: Bioprinting Security Framework for Detecting Sabotage Attacks on Printability and Cell Viability

Additive manufacturing (aka, 3D printing) is increasingly used in bioprinting to create objects layer by layer from ground zero. As research and development progress in bioprinting technology for medical applications, ensuring the security of 3D bioprinters against adversarial attempts becomes critical. This paper proposes six novel sabotage attacks on two types of bioprint constructs as case studies, i.e., a multilayered square box and a human ear, to show that attackers can deliberately manipulate the bioprinting process to sabotage a bioprinted construct. We use quality assurance metrics, i.e., printability and cell viability, to demonstrate the impact of these attacks on the printed constructs. Furthermore, this paper introduces BioSaFe, a bioprinting security framework for real-time monitoring of critical printing parameters per-layer basis, including nozzle temperature, layer thickness, UV curing, HEPA filter status, print geometry, and print speed. BioSaFe employs spatiotemporal modeling and interpolation functions to compare in-situ sensing data with a reference G-code file (being used for printing) in both space and time domains. This direct comparison does not require a training phase on printed objects and enables BioSaFe to start monitoring from the first printing job, supporting Industry 4.0 for mass customization. Our evaluation results show that BioSaFe can accurately detect our sabotage attacks, demonstrating its potential in safeguarding bioprinting processes.