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Early Malware Attacks: The Brain Virus and the Morris Worm
This section explores two influential early malware attacks—the Brain virus and the Morris worm—and their impact on the development of the cybersecurity industry.
The Brain Virus (1986):
- Creators: The Alvi brothers.
- Intended Purpose: To track pirated copies of medical software.
- Actual Impact: The virus unexpectedly spread rapidly, infecting computers via infected disks. While not designed to destroy data, it significantly hampered productivity and business operations.
- Significance: Highlighted the need for proactive security measures and business continuity planning.
The Morris Worm (1988):
- Creator: Robert Morris.
- Intended Purpose: To assess the size of the internet.
- Actual Impact: The program malfunctioned, repeatedly installing itself on computers until they crashed. Approximately 6,000 computers (10% of the internet at the time) were affected.
- Significance: Resulted in millions of dollars in damages due to business disruptions. Led to the creation of Computer Emergency Response Teams (CERTs) to handle security incidents.
Key Takeaways:
Both attacks, despite their creators’ intentions, demonstrated the potential for unintended consequences and the rapid spread of malware. These incidents underscored the critical need for robust security practices and the establishment of coordinated response teams (CERTs), which remain integral to the cybersecurity landscape today. The section emphasizes that understanding these early attacks provides valuable context for modern cybersecurity professionals.