Anti-Wi-Fi Wallpaper

Alephcat writes "New Scientist is reporting on a wallpaper that can prevent hackers accessing secure networks via Wi-Fi - without blocking mobile phone signals - that's been developed by a British defence contractor. It is based on covert 'stealth' technology that was originally designed to hide military radars."

Comments

What, you want me to put wallpaper on my windows?

[radiumsoup]

Or on the ceiling? (Think multi-story apartment complex) Carpet?

Get real... the people who want security in the first place WON'T USE WIFI.

It'll never make it to market.

Same principal as a microwave door.

[Trespass]

Kind of neat, but I worry about the fragility of the wallpaper in any kind of commercial or industrial setting. It seems to me such a material would be far more useful incorporated in a vapor barrier *inside* the wall. I know it would be an expensive retrofit that way, but how else would you deal with drop ceilings and the masses of ducting and cabling therein?

Don't be too hasty...

[ackthpt]

Get real... the people who want security in the first place WON'T USE WIFI.

Uninformed people want security, too, they just don't know it until they've been violated or 0wn3d. One former CIO thought WI-FI was extremely cool until I started showing him the stuff about War-Chalking on Slashdot. Funny reaction, though, seemed I was part of some problem by revealing such things. Must be the PHB self-defense mechanism kicking in... 'didn't make mistake, peon warning of possible security holes is actualy problem, move peon to desk further away, problem solved.'

Re:That's fine... but

[Have Blue]

The article says the main threat this targets is outsiders. They don't care if you VPN out from inside the building- physical security is meant stop you from getting in in the first place if you're not authorized. But you won't be able to get on wireless base stations inside the building if you're outside it.

Cost effective???

[Atryn]

Ok, let me quote a couple spots to see if I understand this correctly...

The technology is designed to stop outsiders gaining access to a secure network by using Wi-Fi networks casually set up by workers at the office.

Ok, so we are talking about stopping "casually set up" convenience networks, not hackers.

But it is also the work of moments then for an outsider to breach that company's computer security using the Wi-Fi connection.

Ok, so it only takes moments to detect if an employee has done this.

Until now, the only way to ensure people are not illicitly gaining access to company secrets has been to turn offices into a signal-proof "Faraday cage", by lining the walls with aluminium foil, and using glass that absorbs radio waves in the windows.

Clearly this solution is expensive and unsightly.

The wall covering can be mass produced at relatively low cost. A square metre will cost about £500: peanuts to big business.

$921 / square meter?!?!?! That's what, roughly $175,000 worth of wallpaper for a 200 square meter open cubicle-filled office space.

Wouldn't it be easier and less expensive to:

1. Train workers not to set up Wi-Fi
2. Have IT periodically scan for active networks

Helps wardrivers find the good stuff...

[dpbsmith]

...they'll beam a wifi and a cellphone signal at a building and measure the reflections. If the building is much more reflective at wifi frequencies than cellphone frequencies, they've found something really worth finding. How they get it once they've found it is another matter, of course.