<http://www.nytimes.com/2004/12/23/technology/circuits/23pain.html?pagewanted=print&position=> The New York Times December 23, 2004 A Force Field in Flat Gray to Protect a Wireless Network Adam Baer s wireless networks have proliferated, computer security companies have come up with increasingly complex defenses against hackers: password protection, encryption, biometrics. Insulating the interior of a house, apartment or office from radio-wave interference is a simpler concept that has yet to become a popular consumer strategy, but a new product called DefendAir from Force Field Wireless could change that. Available online at forcefieldwireless.com, the product is a latex house paint that has been laced with copper and aluminum fibers that form an electromagnetic shield, blocking most radio waves and protecting wireless networks. Priced at $69 a gallon and available only in flat gray (it can be used as a primer), one coat shields Wi-Fi, WiMax and Bluetooth networks operating at frequencies from 100 megahertz to 2.4 gigahertz. Two or three coats will achieve the paint's maximum level of protection, good for networks operating at up to five gigahertz. Force Field Wireless also sells a paint additive ($34 for a 32-ounce container, enough to treat a gallon of paint) and $39 window-shield films. Harold Wray, a Force Field Wireless spokesman, said the paint must be carefully applied. "Radio waves find leaks," he said. It should be applied selectively, he said, because it might hinder the performance of radios, televisions and cellphones. "Our main goal is to shield your wireless radio waves from hackers and outside interference," he said. "Plus, today, many people watch cable television." Adam Baer Copyrigh -- ----------------- R. A. Hettinga <mailto: rah@ibuc.com> The Internet Bearer Underwriting Corporation <http://www.ibuc.com/> 44 Farquhar Street, Boston, MA 02131 USA "... however it may deserve respect for its usefulness and antiquity, [predicting the end of the world] has not been found agreeable to experience." -- Edward Gibbon, 'Decline and Fall of the Roman Empire'