Russian writes tales from the cryptic.

• Position: Pinnacle Systems International Inc founder and data-encryption software writer Oleynik, Vladislav - People

For Internet users scared of I-waymen like Kevin Mitnick, Vladislav Oleynik is the techno bodyguard. The Russian scientist's software, Safe Mail (pronounced safe e-mail), secures the information highway for safe passage of proprietary secrets.

Oleynik, president of Raleigh-based Pinnacle Systems International Inc., says his encryption - coding - software offers "more security than U.S. military standards." So the military must be a customer, right? Not yet, Oleynik admits, though he's pitched the Pentagon. Maybe they're leery about buying security from a Russian native. "Russian, Spanish , Armenian, what the hell is the difference?" says Oleynik, 38, who emigrated in 1993. "You can't keep the genie in the bottle."

Pinnacle, through its subsidiary SafeE Mail Corp., has shipped 850 free demos and sold $20,000 worth of the program in the six months since January. (Both sender and receiver have to have copies, priced at $129.) "Not so much sales," Oleynik shrugs.

But prospects look bright. Reviews praised Safe Mail's compactness, speed, virus protection and error correction. Oleynik and his three co-workers are negotiating "with a couple of huge companies - pharmaceuticals, technology companies, recognizable names in this market."

Oleynik is also trying to raise $2.2 million to...