The Surprising Origins of Computer Viruses

Long before the internet existed, computer viruses were already prowling mainframe systems. The very first self-replicating code was created as a harmless experiment in 1971, not as a malicious attack.

Known as Creeper, this early program simply moved between machines and displayed a playful message stating it was the catch me if you can virus. It was written to test whether a program could jump across separate computers on a network. It took another decade before creators began using similar self-copying techniques for destructive purposes. This evolution turned a fascinating research concept into the massive cybersecurity industry we see today.