Worms & Computer Viruses

Computer worms are a continuing problem for computer users. A worm can reproduce itself and run independent of files. Worms infect computers by traveling through network connections. A worm can take advantage of your e-mail list and send itself to all of your contacts. While not all worms cause damage, many worms are very destructive to computers. Some people use the words “worm” and “virus” interchangeably.

Early Computer Worms

Worms were originally developed to help computers, not hurt them. In 1971, a program was developed to help air traffic controllers track airplanes. Called a “creeper,” this early worm did not replicate itself. During the early 1980s, a worm program was developed for Xerox, where the worms were assigned a specific function to assist operations. One worm was intended to work during the evening hours when employees were at home to take advantage of the extra available computing power. One morning, employees came to work only to find a crashed network -- one of the worms had malfunctioned and gone berserk.

By Laura Evans