Path: utzoo!utgpu!water!watmath!clyde!bellcore!rutgers!cmcl2!brl-adm!umd5!cgs
From: cgs@umd5.umd.edu (Chris Sylvain)
Newsgroups: comp.sys.ibm.pc
Subject: Software Package Inoculates Disks Against Computer Viruses
Keywords: Center for Computer Disease Control
Message-ID: <2792@umd5.umd.edu>
Date: 5 Jun 88 20:42:09 GMT
Organization: University of Maryland, College Park
Lines: 36


[ I'm posting this  article verbatim as  printed in the  _News Breaks_ section
  of the April  28th issue of EDN  as authored by Steven  H Leibson. The  part
  I think is  of most interest  is the  bit  about the   _Center  for Computer
  Disease   Control_.							      ]

	After  one of its computers  became infected with a destructive  virus
program  (sometimes called a Trojan horse  program), Sophco Inc  (Boulder, CO,
(303) 444-1542) added  an inoculation module to  its $195 Protec software-pro-
tection  package for  computers running  MS-DOS   version 3.0 and  higher.  An
engineer  at  the company had downloaded a  seemingly innocuous program (an X-
rated animated graphics program) from an  electronic bulletin  board to a com-
puter's hard disk.  That program contained an infectious module that installed
delayed-action routines into executable software  on the hard disk. Later, the
routines destroyed the files on the disk. [See what  having lust in your heart
will do to you?]

	Protec version 3.2 can safeguard your programs with a protective virus
program called Vaccinate, which you install in your executable files with ano-
ther program called Syringe.  The Protec system  also includes a decoy program
called Canary that you  can use to test  suspect software.  You include Canary
on a floppy disk along with the dubious software  and run the suspect program.
If the Canary  program "dies" after the suspect  program   finishes, you  know
there's a virus program on your disk.  [Anyone have any guesses how  that sup-
posed to work?] [Now here is the part I find most interesting:]

	Sophco has also  initiated the Center   for Computer Disease  Control,
which will act as a clearing house for information about such antisocial soft-
ware.


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