Psychology of
C
omputer Viruses:From Michaelangelo to Chernobyl
How They Affect Everyone!
By Albert K. Ne III
How People React To Computer Viruses
Online Resources For Computer Viruses
What is a Computer Virus?
While there is no widely-accepted definition of the term computer virus, the following loose definition should suffice:
A computer virus is executable code that, when run by someone, infects or attaches itself to other executable code in a computer in an effort to reproduce itself. Some computer viruses are malicious, erasing files or locking up systems; others merely present a problem solely through the act of infecting other code. In either case, though, computer virus infections should not go untreated.
Closely related to computer viruses are Trojan Horses and worms. A Trojan Horse is a program that performs some undesired yet intended action while, or in addition to, pretending to do something else. One common class of trojans are fake login programs - collecting accounts and passwords by prompting for this info just like a normal login program does. Another is a disk defragger that erases files rather than reorganizing them. A Trojan Horse differs from a virus in that the former does not attempt to reproduce itself. A Worm is just a self-propagating virus. The Internet Worm from November '88 is a famous example.
Viruses come in many shapes and sizes. Recently, the world was exposed to Melissa, a virus that was used as an attachment to e-mail messages. It wreaked havoc worldwide because every time the attached document was opened, it sent 50 additional e-mail messages to addresses of the user. It was discovered later that the author of the virus had created it for an exotic dancer in Florida. On April 27, 1999 the Chernobyl virus is scheduled to make its annual debut as part of a tribute to the nuclear disaster that occured in Russian city of the same name. Here is a brief overview on how some virus work.
File infectors
These viruses attach themselves to regular programs, such as COM or EXE files under DOS. Thus, they are invoked each time the infected program is run.
Cluster infectors
They modify the file system so that they are run prior to other programs. Note that, unlike file infectors, they do not actually attach themselves to programs.
Macro viruses Word processing documents can serve as sources of transmission for viruses that take advantage of the auto-execution macro capabilities in products such as Microsoft Word. Simply by opening an infected document, the virus, written in a product's macro language, can spread.
System infectors
Computer operating systems typically set aside a portion of each disk for code to boot the computer. Under DOS, this section is called a boot sector on floppies or a master boot record (MBR) for hard disks. System infectors store
themselves in this area and hence are invoked whenever the disk is used to boot the system.
A virus must be executed by someone, perhaps unwittingly, in order to spread. Period. Some ways in which this occurs include:
Booting from an infected floppy
System infectors are loaded each time an infected disk is used to boot the system. This can happen even if a disk is not equipped with the files needed to truly boot the computer, as is the case with most floppies. With PCs, the initial infection typically occurs when someone boots - or reboots - a computer with an infected floppy accidentally left in drive A. It is always a good habit to check and remove any floppies that might be in the drives before booting your machine.
Running an infected program
As programs infected with a file infector are run, the virus spreads. For this reason, you should regularly scan for viruses any programs you retrieve from a BBS, the net, a colleague, etc... There are even instances of commercial,
shrink-wrapped software that have been infected with viruses!
If you would like to learn more about computer viruses, check out the Thomas Jefferson University
computer virus resources.
In searching other previous generation websites I discovered that many students had encountered various types of computer viruses. Some were intrusive and annoying while others were disruptive and some even destructive. Here are what some had to say about their experiences.
Date: Tue, 2 Dec 1997 17:59:32 -1000
From: Akira Sasabe
To: Leon James
Subject: My Report 2
Dr. James,
I decided to retype the whole thing today and I did just about the half of it now, and the information seems to appear all right on my web page. It was really unfortunate since this time I decided to use computers only at Porteus and Moore Hall. I still do not know what was the cause of the virus problem, but I think as long as I stick with one computer, it seems to be OK. I found my "favorite" computer at Porteus and do my best to secure the seat whenever I come in to do the work. I just hope that I find out the cause of this problem so other people who do not have computers at home will not suffer like me...
What I found really sad about the previous excerpt was that the individual probably didn't realize that as long as other people utilize the same computer, he will always be susceptible to viruses that others may inadvertently bring in on their disks. I have been in the same situation many of times before and it can be extremely frustrating because you never really know what is happening until its to late.
Brandon Suetsugu was one of the many exceptions that I found. Brandon is a lab monitor at the Social Sciences building computer lab and usually knows what to do when he encounters a virus. For example, he stated;
"People should not have to suffer if they know how to deal with viruses and can prevent it. I scan my disk for viruses using Mcafee before and after each session. I also find terminals that are not infected with viruses. I know which terminals do contain viruses in the Porteus lab, so I try to stay away from them. There also might be a new way of inserting viruses into the computer and that is through the internet. I have received e-mail messages from friends in the past warning me that if this particular file is sent to you through an e-mail message, then do not open it up, because it contains a computer virus. You would think people have better things to do with their time than insert computer viruses into of all places, e-mail messages and send them as attachments!"
David Chang of Generation 409b/G8 used a more laid back type of analysis to describe what he thought was really unfortunate for people who came into contact with viruses. He stated:
"Most people seem to have a bit of healthy fear of viruses. It seems a bit ironic that it really seems to be the people who do not have computers who are affected the most (at least here in the university). Its the users of the computer labs, shuttling their precious files back and forth on floppies on a gigantic relatively unsecured group of computers all tied to a LAN. They are the ones who are at risk the most, and where as if you have your own computer you can take precautions, there isn't much the lab users can do."
Finally, I think that
Kyle Kaneshiro really summed it up well with his view on viruses: Here is what he had to say:"There really is no 100% guaranteed way to protect ourselves, but having a anti-virus program is extremely helpful. I have learned to be very careful when downloading files off the internet and to scan them before using it. Also, backing up important files was good advice I came across just in case my hard drive becomes infected and dies."
There were many others in previous generations who were both intriqued and dismayed with the concept of viruses.
I, for one, could never understand the reasoning behind creating such destructive programs. I once saw a gentlemen on the television show "Dateline" discussing his intention to create programs that were going to be used to counterattack viruses that were destroying computer software around the world. I wondered to myself, why was the creator of the viruses using his technical skills and know how to do something that was illegal, could cause a lot of heartache, and cost lots of money? Till this day, I still cannot come up with a reasonable answer.
How People React To Computer Viruses
In recent months there have been many different computer viruses that were unleashed on the World Wide Web. For many, this has not been a welcomed occasion especially because these viruses not only cause widespread damage to software, but cost a lot of money to contain. You will notice that I used the word "contain," in the previous sentence. I believe that is all society can do for now, just contain the problem.
From the person using a computer in his home, to the United States military everyone has different ways of coping with viruses. Those who come into contact with it inadvertently are usually just inconvenienced through time and frustration. However, larger companies and organizations such as the
United States Military, Department of Energy, and even the Federal Bureau of Investigation are sometimes targeted for malicious reasons and this is where things can start to get hairy. These organizations are responsible for the protection of its citizens from foreign and domestic adversaries. When they are attacked with viruses created specifically for them, it puts the rest of society at risk for further damage. I believe that one solution for this problem is education. If we start to educate our children at a very early age about the psychological factors behind this type of behavior, we can start to reap the benefits of a more productive society.
From this report I have discovered that the only way to protect oneself from becoming a statistic is to be educated on the many different aspects of computer technology. When I first became involved with this knowledge I wasn't prepared to take on the massive amount of information associated with the field. However, one quickly learns that without that knowledge, you make yourself susceptible to all types of misfortunes.
For future generations my advice for you is to be steadfast in your beliefs and to stay determined and focused in all that you do. I know that at times this technology might seem foreign and maybe even frustrating, but the best thing to do is to learn as much as you can so that you can use those tools in your quest to be computer literate. Good luck and God speed!
ONLINE RESOURCES FOR COMPUTER VIRUSES
The following sites websites have an extensive amount of information concerning viruses. I found all of them to be very helpful in educating its users on identifying them, knowing what to expect, and in certain cases prevailing over them. Hope they will be as useful to you as well!
These are some of my personal favorites. Hope they'll be as valuable to you as well.
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