First Computer Virus in the DOS System: Brain

Overview

• Name: Brain (also known as Pakistani Brain)
• Developers: Amjad Farooq Alvi and Basit Farooq Alvi
• Year of Creation: 1986
• Origin: Lahore, Pakistan

Details

• Type: Boot sector virus
• Target: IBM PC-compatible systems running MS-DOS
• Infection Method: Brain infected the boot sector of floppy disks, which was crucial for the disk’s operation. When an infected disk was used to boot a computer, the virus would load into memory and infect any other floppy disks inserted into the drive.

Impact

• Functionality: Brain was relatively benign compared to later viruses. It did not cause significant damage to data but instead replaced the boot sector of the floppy disk with a copy of the virus, making the original boot sector data inaccessible.
• Signature: Infected disks often had a message embedded in the boot sector, including the creators’ contact information and a request to contact them for inoculation. This suggests that the virus was not intended to be malicious but rather a form of “software piracy protection.”

Legacy

• Significance: Brain is historically significant as it represents one of the first widespread examples of a computer virus. It highlighted the potential for software to spread and disrupt systems, laying the groundwork for future cybersecurity awareness and antivirus developments.