Oct 31, Kathmandu:  What do you mean by a computer virus? Computer hacking software or something else? We still fear when we hear this name. Since the 1980s, computer viruses have wreaked havoc on everything from our email inboxes to our businesses.

In January 1986, the world's first virus was coded for Windows PC. It was named 'Brain'. Even though the virus was created for a good purpose, a lot of damage was done due to its misuse.

Millions of computer viruses have been created since then. Currently, as the awareness of cyber security is reaching the general public, it is necessary to be aware of the damage caused by viruses. Today we are giving information about 10 dangerous computer viruses created in the world.

Melissa
Until 1999, computer viruses were a new concept. However, the Melissa virus is considered a spreading virus. It started with a person named 'David Lee Smith using an AOL account to upload files to the Internet.

AOL used to hijack early versions of Microsoft Word while downloading. Also, if the user had Microsoft Outlook, the virus would automatically send mail to the top 50 people in that address book. At that time, this problem was not taken seriously.

But according to the FBI, at that time many corporate and government email servers were overloaded and had to be shut down. Also, the internet traffic was very slow. Shortly after this incident, the FBI arrested David Lee Smith. Only then did the Melissa virus appear.

ILV

Who doesn't want a love letter in their inbox? But in the year 2000, many people fell victim to this virus by clicking on mail that looked like a love letter in Microsoft Outlook. This is a virus. It used to write ILV in the subject of the email of an unknown person and send it.

But on the body, he used to send a link written "LOVE-LETTER-FOR-YOU.TXT.VBS". Whoever clicked on that link, a virus would automatically be downloaded on his device and would cause long-term effects on important documents.

Also, the same type of mail was automatically sent to others in the email. This virus damaged millions of computers in a single day.

Cad Red

This virus that appeared in 2001 was the first to attack corporate systems. Therefore, some people consider this virus the first virus to attack corporate systems. It would especially cause damage to systems running Microsoft Internet Information Services (IIS) for Windows Server.

The Code Red worm specifically targets systems running Microsoft Internet Information Services (IIS) for Windows Server. As described in the Microsoft Security Bulletin, attackers used unchecked buffers, established server sessions, conducted buffer overruns, and executed code on web servers.

As a result, important websites “Welcome to http://www.worm.com! Hacked by Chinese” appeared. Also, this virus was the cause of various dangerous Denial of Service (DoS) attacks. The attackers named the virus after being influenced by 'Mountain Dew Code Red', a drink drunk by security personnel.

invite

This virus appeared shortly after the Cad Red virus attack. This virus was similar to Red Card and ILV. It could change itself from one device to another device. However, it is mainly used to move from email and websites to other devices. This especially caused damage to the Windows operating system.

Also, you can create a guest account by changing the system files. Due to the effect of this virus, many machines were damaged and many big corporations had to shut down their networks. So far, no data has come out about how much damage this virus has caused.

saebig

This virus appeared in the year 2003 and caused damage to many Windows computers through email. If this virus sends 'Details' or 'Thank you in the subject of the email, it will be requested to eat the files attached in 'Body'.

Whoever eats the said file automatically downloads the virus on that device. And started harming the said device. Also, he used to send similar emails to other addresses in the email.

There were different variants of this virus-like A, B, C, D, E, and F. In which the most terrifying variant was F. According to a report published in August 2003, one out of 17 emails used to be of the F variant of this virus. According to the ability of this virus to spread, there was a loss of two billion rupees.

Midum

"I'm just doing my job, nothing personal, sorry."

This virus is used to send these types of messages. This virus, which appeared in 2004, is among the viruses that spread sporadically around the world. Like a virus, it is also used to send attachments in emails. If you click on that attachment, it will automatically download and cause damage to your device. Also used to send similar emails to others.

Due to this virus that spread all over the world in a short period of time, internet traffic was also affected worldwide. According to reports given by some websites at that time, their working capacity was reduced by 8 to 10 percent compared to normal time.

Zeus

This virus is also known as Zbot. This is a Trojan malware that infects Microsoft Windows. It was discussed in 2007 when it sought information from the US Department of Transportation. In particular, it used to request financial or banking information.

This virus works by developing a botnet. A botnet is a network of remote-controlled computers or bots infected with malware. With this, multiple computers can be controlled at once.

Usually, this virus is downloaded after a user clicks on a malicious link in an email or downloads an infected file. According to a report published by the FBI in 2010, the attackers stole about 70 million dollars from this virus.

 Stuxnet

This virus was created in 2010 targeting industrial control systems. It especially caused material damage to Iran's nuclear facilities and centrifuges. Accessing the software used to control industrial equipment, it caused damage to them.

Therefore, it is considered the world's first cyber weapon. This virus is used to spread from USB drivers to each other devices.

poison ivy

It is also known as Backdoor Trojan or Remote Access Trojan (RAT). It is especially considered a type of malware rather than a virus. It is used to gain access to the victim's computer. However, it was identified for the first time in 2005.

However, it caught the world's attention after the attack in 2011 using Trojans. Known as nitro hacking attacks, it was used to steal sensitive information from government agencies and other organizations.

WannaCry

The first attack using this virus was in May 2017. The attacker used this virus to hold the user's files hostage and get paid in bitcoins. By using this virus, the attackers managed to get billions of rupees.