First Computer Virus (Brain, the first virus)

In Pakistan, Basit Farooq Alvi and Amjad Farooq Alvi ran a computer store called Brain Computer Services.

They soon discovered that a floppy disk contained computer instructions that were executed when the computer was first turned on. Basit and Amjad used this knowledge for their own purposes and created computer instructions that would change the label of floppy disks in the computer to (C) Brain. The instructions would make a copy of themselves onto other floppy disks that were inserted into the floppy-disk drive.

Brain did nothing other than change a floppy’s label and copies itself to other floppies, but that was sufficient to cause trouble. People continued to do what they had been doing for a few years: exchanging computer programs and files using nearly the only available means — circulating them on floppy disks. At first, no one noticed that some of these floppies had a stowaway on board, an unwanted passenger with a single — although relatively benign — purpose.

In 1987, users at the University of Delaware began noticing that the labels on some of their floppy disks were mysteriously being changed to (C) Brain. The Brain virus had made its way from central Asia to North America — and doubtless, to the other continents of the world.