 |
| Chen Ing-Hau, the author of the Chernobyl or CIH
virus |
Five years ago today, on 26 April 1999, the CIH virus (also known as
Chernobyl) caused considerable damage as it flashed critical chips
inside computers worldwide. According to government reports, in
South Korea alone it caused over $250 million damage, infecting a
quarter of a million computers.
The virus, named "Chernobyl" by the media as it was programmed
to activate its destructive payload on the thirteenth anniversary
of the Chernobyl reactor meltdown, was able to wipe the data from
users' hard disks and overwrite the computer BIOS chip, making the
computer unusable.
"The Chernobyl virus opened a new chapter in the severity of
computer malware," said Graham Cluley, senior technology consultant
for Sophos. "It could effectively turn your computer into a useless
lump of plastic - the only way to get your PC working again was to
open it up and replace the chip."
Once the BIOS chip of infected computers was overwritten by the
Chernobyl virus, users found they were unable to use their
computers at all. Repair involved physically removing the BIOS chip
and replacing it with a fresh one. On some computers, the BIOS chip
is not removable, and so it could only be replaced by swapping the
entire motherboard.
In September 2000, the Taiwanese military authorities detained Chen Ing-Hau in
connection with the Chernobyl virus.
"Today more and more virus writers are turning away from the
data destructive payloads used by Chen Ing-Hau in the Chernobyl
virus, and implementing more insidious forms of attack instead,"
continued Cluley. "Increasingly we are encountering more viruses
which are designed to steal information - such as credit cards and
passwords - from compromised computers. All companies should ensure
they are properly protected."
More than 100 million users in 150 countries rely on Sophos as the best protection against complex threats and data loss. Sophos is committed to providing security and data protection solutions that are simple to manage, deploy and use and that deliver the industry's lowest total cost of ownership. Sophos offers award-winning encryption, endpoint security, web, email, and network access control solutions backed by SophosLabs - a global network of threat intelligence centers. With more than two decades of experience, Sophos is regarded as a leader in security and data protection by top analyst firms and has received many industry awards.
Sophos is headquartered in Boston, US and Oxford, UK. More information is available at www.sophos.com.