Brain (computer virus)
Other names | Ashar (older variant) |
---|---|
Original author(s) | Amjad Farooq Alvi |
Initial release | 19 January 1986 |
Platform | IBM Personal Computer, IBM PC compatibles |
Type | Boot sector computer virus |
Brain is the industry standard name for a computer virus that was released in its first form on 19 January 1986,[1] and is considered to be the first computer virus for the IBM Personal Computer (IBM PC) and compatibles.
Description
Brain affects the PC by replacing the
- Welcome to the Dungeon (c) 1986 Amjads (pvt) Ltd VIRUS_SHOE RECORD V9.0 Dedicated to the dynamic memories of millions of viruses who are no longer with us today - Thanks GOODNESS!!! BEWARE OF THE er..VIRUS : this program is catching program follows after these ....$#@%$@!!
There are many minor and major variations to that version of the text. The virus slows down the
Brain lacks code for dealing with
The virus came complete with address and three phone numbers, and a message that told the user that their machine was infected and to call them for inoculation:
- Welcome to the Dungeon © 1986 Amjads (pvt). BRAIN COMPUTER SERVICES 730 NIZAM
- BLOCK ALLAMA IQBAL TOWN LAHORE-PAKISTAN PHONE: 430791,443248,280530. Beware of this VIRUS.... Contact us for vaccination...
This program was originally used to track a heart monitoring program for the IBM PC, and people were distributing illicit copies of the disks. This tracking program was supposed to stop and track illegal copies of the disk, however the program also sometimes used the last five kilobytes on an Apple floppy, making additional saves to the disk by other programs impossible.
Author response
When the brothers began to receive a large number of phone calls from people in the United Kingdom, the United States, and elsewhere, demanding that they disinfect their machines, they were stunned and tried to explain to the outraged callers that their motivation had not been malicious. Their phone lines were overloaded. The brothers, with another brother, Shahid Farooq Alvi, continued business in Pakistan, as Brain NET Internet service providers with a company called Brain Telecommunication Limited.
In 2011, 25 years after Brain was released, Mikko Hyppönen of F-Secure traveled to Pakistan to interview Amjad for a documentary.[3][4] Being inspired by this documentary and its widespread popularity, a group of Pakistani bloggers interviewed Amjad, under the banner of Bloggerine.[5]
See also
References
- ^ Leyden, John (January 19, 2006). "PC virus celebrates 20th birthday". The Register. Retrieved March 21, 2011.
- ^ Elmer-Dewitt, Philip; Munro, Ross H. (September 26, 1988). "Technology: You Must Be Punished". Time. Archived from the original on December 14, 2008.
- ^ Acohido, Brian (March 8, 2011). "Documentary examines the inception of PC viruses 25 years ago". USA Today. Retrieved March 9, 2011.
- ^ "Searching for the first PC virus in Pakistan". F-Secure. Archived from the original on March 16, 2011. Retrieved March 21, 2011.
- ^ "To The Roots Of PC Virus". Bloggerine. March 2014.
External links
- "BrainNET website". Archived from the original on 2005-02-04. Retrieved 2004-05-01.
- Description of (c)Brain at F-Secure site
- Brain: Searching for the first PC virus in Pakistan on YouTube
- Information on the Brain Virus And Variants at textfiles.com
- TED talk by Mikko Hyppönen Fighting viruses, defending the net
- Pakistani Brain (IBM MS-DOS PC Computer Virus) and its impact