Many early computer viruses were not created for malicious purposes

The history of malware includes computer viruses, worms, trojans, and ransomware

Some of the earliest significant pieces of malware—the Creeper worm and the Elk Cloner virus—displayed silly messages to users without causing major harm. As computer science has advanced, malware has become more easily spread, incorporated social engineering to manipulate users, targeted infrastructure systems, and been used by governments for virtual espionage.

Malware has transitioned from notoriety-driven to profit- and data-driven

Many of the first researchers and hobbyists who created viruses and worms showed a natural curiosity in experimenting with and designing such software to make a name for themselves and advance the field of computer science. In the future, AI-augmented malware may adapt in real-time or design enhanced cryptojackers, infostealers, and ransomware for cybercriminals.

The first computer virus was created by a USC doctoral candidate in 1983

A year after creating malware in a controlled experiment that multiplied until it took over all of a computer's memory, Fred Cohen went public with his research and its risks. He called the self-replicating software a "computer virus," a term Cohen's advisor, Leonard Adleman, coined to describe its infectious behavior. (Some readers may experience a paywall.)

Safely explore historic viruses and other malicious software in the Malware Museum

Curated by the Internet Archive, this collection of more than 80 MS-DOS-era pieces of software can be experienced within an emulated environment to see what it would look like to trigger a virus on computers in the 1980s and 90s. Every piece of malware has a version available for download whose malicious capabilities have been removed.

Modern antivirus software searches for malicious behavior alongside malicious code

The first viral infections were identified by comparing the computer code of programs and files with a database of known virus codes, a method known as signature detection. The ongoing creation of new malware made databases continuously outdated, leading to the development of systems that detect patterns consistent with known viral activity.

Creating malware requires more than knowledge of programming languages

Because computer viruses, worms, and other malicious software reside within a computer's operating system, which manages computer hardware and software, cybercriminals writing effective malicious code must understand how the OS manages input and output, permissions, memory, etc. Knowledge of credentials and network access also helps create malware that easily spreads.

Elk Cloner, the first computer virus to spread in public, was written as a practical joke by Richard Skrenta, a Pittsburgh high school student.

Elk Cloner, the first computer virus to spread in public, was written as a practical joke by Richard Skrenta, a Pittsburgh high school student.

A computer virus is a type of malware that self-replicates and spreads

Spread through emails, downloads, messaging services, and outdated software, viruses attach to programs, self-replicate, and infect other systems. They can delete files, steal data, and cause performance issues as they spread.

Some viruses evade detection by altering their own code or hiding in Microsoft Office

Computer viruses are often classified by how they spread or which files they infect, with the oldest ones—boot sector viruses—targeting systems that are active when a computer is turned on. Macros—custom codes in office productivity programs authored to automate tasks—spawned their own class of viruses.

The ILOVEYOU virus exemplified how social engineering could help spread malware

Displaying as LOVE-LETTER-FOR-YOU.TXT on Windows computers, the file appeared to be a love letter, which many users willingly opened. However, the file contained a script that damaged and hid files, caused Internet Explorer to download software to help steal passwords, and copied itself to all Outlook contacts to continue spreading.

The foundation for computer viruses was published after its creator's death

In the late 1940s, Hungarian American mathematician, scientist, and engineer John von Neumann gave a series of lectures where he explained the theoretical framework for a computer program that could replicate itself—the von Neumann Universal Constructor. His lectures were later compiled and published in 1966, nine years after his death from cancer.

Computer viruses' hijacking abilities led them to be named after biological viruses

Just as their counterparts infect cells and take control of cellular processes to replicate endlessly, computer viruses cannot replicate on their own and must copy their code into host software before duplicating when the program or file is opened. The term "virus" comes from the Latin word for "venom."

Logic bomb viruses can awaken from a dormant phase without human input

Theoretically, computer viruses can remain idle indefinitely while awaiting specific user actions, as instructed by their code. However, logic bombs—embedded code that triggers when specific conditions are met—can automatically execute viruses, such as when a certain date or time is reached.

In 2015, a custom virus program was used to destroy and transform art images

At the Art Laboratory Berlin's "bOdy pandemOnium: Immersion into Noise" exhibit, Chicago-born artist Joseph Nechvatal explored viractualism—the interface between the biological and the technological—via a custom virus program that randomly altered images representing the human eye and rectum.

Peter Norton, for whom Norton Antivirus is named, questioned the threat of viruses

The software author was among several computer experts in 1988 who suggested that reports on the threat of computer viruses were exaggerated, referring to testimonials of infections and their spread as "urban legends."

In 2019, a laptop loaded with six of the worst malware in history and described as 'an exhibit of historical weaponry' sold for $1.3M.

In 2019, a laptop loaded with six of the worst malware in history and described as 'an exhibit of historical weaponry' sold for $1.3M.

Where did artful screen savers go? A history

Early on in the personal computer days, users and engineers realized screens could be damaged if the same image—of a button, a logo, or a navigation bar—stays static for too long. To preserve the screen, developers deployed screen savers—automatic reductions in the light intensity, or regularly changing patterns on the screen. These artful screen savers had a heyday in the 1990s, but have since lost popularity to the simple black screen. Read the history here.

Microsoft's initial successes came from promising products that did not yet exist

In discussions with teams responsible for MITS's Altair 8800 and IBM's PC, Bill Gates and Paul Allen claimed to have created ready-to-use software. Code for the former was not completed until Paul Allen's flight to MITS' headquarters, where the software was successfully tested for the first time.

English mathematician Ada Lovelace wrote the first computer algorithm a century before computers existed and hypothesized that computing devices would one day be able to compose music—foreseeing the generative AI systems of today.

Viral pop artists create systems of participation, not just music

Musicologist (and Swift expert) Paula Clare Harper weighs in on the factors that make music go viral. Tracks designed for shareability that feed well into content algorithms on streaming platforms are able to grow in popularity, with traditional human gatekeepers sidelined.

Memes grew alongside the internet

Early memes featured static images with superimposed text, but grew animated with the advent of video-sharing sites like YouTube and GIF-friendly imageboards like 4chan.

A joke about mercury in an elevator led to the invention of emoticons

A false message about mercury contamination was posted in response to a physics problem on Carnegie Mellon's discussion board in 1982, which some users took seriously. The need to indicate which messages were jokes led to the creation of facial expressions using special characters.

The bloody history of the true crime genre

The true crime genre appears to have crawled out of an unlocked closet between 1550 and 1700. Rising literacy rates and printing technologies during this period led to leaflets and ballads-turned-broadsides that graphically regurgitated the findings. These products often included woodcuts of the crime's "unsavory acts.". Such content was snapped up by the "artisan class and above" as poorer classes lacked the funds to fuel the hobby.

Radioactive elements can introduce software errors because the ionizing radiation they produce can detach electrons from atoms, and computer code relies on the distribution of electrons.

Radiohead's chatbot was born over 20 years before ChatGPT

Looking for a novel way to promote their 2001 record "Amnesiac," Radiohead began working with ActiveBuddy, the people responsible for the popular SmarterChild chatbot, to create GooglyMinotaur, their own AOL chatbot based on a character based on the album. This oral history offers a deep dive on this fascinating piece of music and tech trivia, demonstrating the band's reliably forward-thinking perspective and providing a window into an early iteration of commercial artificial intelligence.

'Potter Puppet Pals' was one of the internet’s first viral videos

Created by animator Neil Cicierega in the early 2000s, Potter Puppet Pals featured felt puppets parodying the Harry Potter characters. Its 2007 video “The Mysterious Ticking Noise” became an early YouTube sensation, amassing more than 200 million views.

There are 5 key reasons why people carry out hoaxes

While it's hard to pinpoint just one motive for trickery, many cases indicate that hoaxers are seeking attention. Other reasons include making a profit, or simply that fooling others is fun.

The history of many kitchen appliances involves unexpected discoveries and applications, including wartime radar turned hamster defroster and replacing an 'ice king' with heat-stealing boxes.

The name 'Silicon Valley' arose from the founding of Shockley Semiconductor Laboratory in Fairchild Semiconductor in 1956-57, founded near Stanford University in Palo Alto

Learn more about the history of fireworks, which dates back to an accidental invention during an alchemist's quest for information about immortality.

A vending machine run with Anthropic's AI went out of business after it was convinced to give away items for free and sell a video game console.

Memecoins are a type of cryptocurrency—a form of digital currency with a wide variety of uses—created around popular 'memes,' or viral internet jokes.

Visualize how CRISPR-Cas9—a type of immune system used by single-celled organisms to attack invasive viruses—targets and makes precise changes to a gene's DNA.

Ebola is a filovirus, meaning it resembles a thread under a microscope, though it sometimes twists and can resemble a bowl of spaghetti.

Netflix profits when you're not watching, and its movies are designed that way—read a detail-rich critical essay exposing lesser-known Netflix takes

When you complete a CAPTCHA on a website to prove you are human, you may be unknowingly training algorithms for self-driving cars, whose systems require training data to help identify crosswalks, bicycles, and other outdoor objects.

Human-to-human transmission of hantavirus remains extremely rare, so the 2026 hantavirus cruise ship outbreak doesn't mean we're facing a COVID-style pandemic risk.

The first line of 'immortal' human cells, which can divide indefinitely and are used in scientific research, was nonconsensually taken from a Black woman.

Some Pokémon have been named after real and fictional organisms, while some real-world species have been named after Pokémon, such as Chilicola charizard and Binburrum zapdos.

Mid-century modern graphic designers, known for their bright colors and bold lines in advertising, also found success with children's books.

Poison ivy was sent to Europe in the 1600s as an exotic, ornamental oddity, where it was purposefully grown in the English royal gardens at Kew, the Faculty of Medicine in Paris, and a few other locations.

The Dracula character, now seen as the vampire archetype, was inspired by a seafood-induced nightmare its creator experienced.

Hear 50 years of iconic hip-hop samples, the genre's foundational looped tracks

The original copy of the Declaration of Independence is not a pristine document, and even features a smudged anonymous handprint in the bottom left corner.

Explore fun facts from the USPS, including unique post office buildings, a stamp that traveled past Pluto, and more.

Prince's sexually explicit 1984 track 'Darling Nikki' attracted the ire of the Parents Music Resource Center, an advocacy group that inspired the Parental Advisory sticker, even though the song ends with a Christian message.

The word 'jazz' evolved from 'jasm,' 19th-century American slang for 'energy'

Explore an interactive map built from more than 100,000 survey responses on where people find joy in their lives