Patent ID: 8347354

Claim:
A method for restricting wireless activity in a computer, the method comprising: controlling, via an access control list, access to a software element that is installed in the computer, wherein the software element is designed to support communication via a wireless hardware communication interface of the computer, and wherein the access control list does not provide permissions to any user account to access the software element; running a system-account process under a system account of an operating system, wherein the system account has more privileges than any user account, wherein the access control list provides the system account with access to the software element, and wherein the system-account process has specific functions, including being able to manage wireless communication via the wireless hardware communication interface with one or more specific wireless devices that are compatible with the wireless hardware communication interface, and wherein the system-account process, due to its specific functions, is unable to conduct wireless communication via the wireless hardware communication interface with any wireless device other than the one or more specific wireless devices, even if such other wireless device is within wireless communication range of the computer and is compatible with the wireless hardware communication interface; preventing access by any user-account process running on the computer under any user account to a control panel application for the wireless hardware communication interface; and permitting any user-account process running on the computer under any user account to access the software element only by providing one or more commands to the system-account process, wherein the wireless hardware communication interface is compatible with a wireless personal area network standard.