The 640 MEG Shareware Studio 2/The 640 Meg Shareware Studio CD-ROM Volume II (Data Express)(1993).ISO/virus/michtime.zip/MICHTIME.TXT

Text File | 1992-03-18 | 23KB | 380 lines

                              Michelangelo fiasco:
                              a historical timeline


       Copyright 1992 by Rob Rosenberger; all rights reserved.  Some
       quotes obtained from copyrighted stories published by the
       Associated Press, United Press International, Reuters News Service,
       and Washington Post.  Contact Rob Rosenberger at P.O. Box 643,
       O'Fallon, IL 62269.  This copy printed on 3/18/92.

 1/28/92    Newswire reports say Leading Edge shipped up to 500 computers in
            December with the Michelangelo virus.  It apparently came from a
            third-party subcontractor; an alert customer detected it.

 1/28/92    Osicom Technologies announces it will bundle an antivirus package
            with all personal computers.

 1/29/92    UPI reporter Jack Lesar files a newswire saying "the Michelangelo
            Virus could erase data from hard disks of hundreds of thousands of
            computers around the world on Michelangelo's birthday, March 6."
            Winn Schwartau, executive director of the Nashville-based
            International Partnership Against Computer Terrorism, attributes
            magical powers to the virus: "`It's usually been a rule that a
            virus can't be propagated by just reading from a data disk. But in
            this case it appears to no longer be true,' said Schwartau. `You
            may consciously just be reviewing data, not moving data, but the
            virus is hidden and executable and it's doing its thing.'"
               Interestingly, the report continues: "[John] McAfee said the
            Michelangelo Virus is the third most common in terms of reports of
            infection.  It accounts for 14 percent of infection reports -- a
            total of about 6,000 last year. And he notes the figure represents
            the number of sites at which infection has been reported -- each of
            which may have one machine, or 100."

 2/3/92     Newswire reports say Da Vinci Systems distributed about 900 disks
            infected with the Michelangelo virus during January.

 2/11/92    Reuters reporter Wilson da Silva files the first newswire saying
            the Michelangelo virus resides on "millions of personal computers
            around the world."  The estimate -- five million worldwide -- comes
            from John McAfee.  In the story, researcher Wayne Boxall of
            Australia's Computer Virus Information Group erroneously states the
            virus spreads via computer bulletin boards.

 2/13/92    Microcom announces it has released a free program to disinfect the
            Michelangelo virus.  The program also detects (but does not
            disinfect) 668 other viruses.

 2/17/92    Washington Post reporter John Burgess writes a Michelangelo story
            questioning gigantic estimates and the role of people who made
            those claims.  "It remains unclear whether large numbers of
            computers contain undetected copies of the virus, though estimates
            of millions of machines have been published in the news media...
            Past scares about viruses often have proven to be overblown.
               "`I'm finding virus catastrophes everywhere,' said Martin Tibor,
            a data recovery consultant in San Rafael, Calif., whose repeated
            calls to the media after the Leading Edge incident helped publicize
            Michelangelo. `These things are replicating like crazy.'
               "Consultant Tibor conceded that the calls he made to the media
            about Michelangelo were in part motivated by hopes of bringing
            business his way -- it in fact brought in only one client, he said.
            But his main motivation, Tibor said, was to get the word out about
            a serious computer danger.  `I see the victims of viruses all the
            time,' he said."

 2/18/92    Leading Edge announces it will provide free antivirus software with
            its entire line of computers.  "Because of the increasing number of
            computer virus outbreaks throughout the industry, no one should
            assume that software they acquire will be free from infection,"
            claims president Albert J. Agbay.

 2/19/92    Symantec announces it has released a free program to disinfect the
            Michelangelo virus.  Symantec's software searches for no other
            viruses (though it pretends to), unlike Microcom's free program
            which detects 669 different infections.  Symantec also purchases a
            full-page ad in Computerworld's 2/24 issue to warn readers about
            the virus.

 2/21/92    Chris Torchia files an AP newswire describing how Michelangelo
            "could send millions of computer users around the world through the
            ceiling."  Tori Case, product manager for Central Point Software (a
            McAfee competitor), claims as many as five million computers
            worldwide may suffer, including 500,000 in the United States.

 2/24/92    The artist Michelangelo would have turned either 516 or 517 years
            old this March -- newswires no longer agree on his age.

 2/24/92    Computer columnist Lawrence Magid offers dangerous advice when he
            tells readers they can avoid Michelangelo's devastating effects if
            they activate a computer "on March 5 and leave it running until
            March 7."  Magid claims viruses travel by computer bulletin board,
            then oddly advises readers to download antivirus software from a
            bulletin board.

 2/28/92    An executive with Fuji's floppy disk division makes the newswires
            by offering advice on how to detect Michelangelo.

 2/28/92    Egghead offers to ship a copy of "the special `Norton AntiVirus
            Michelangelo Edition' for just $4.99."  They also offer to send "a
            free brochure about computer viruses," but some customers will
            complain it arrived more than a week after the Michelangelo threat
            had passed.

 3/2/92     John McAfee, after previously claiming five million computers have
            Michelangelo, appears on the "Today" show and says "there are over
            a million systems infected now."  McAfee doesn't use the word
            "estimate," though he may have meant to.

 3/2/92     Intel Corp. ceases shipment of its LANSpool program after
            discovering 839 packages carried Michelangelo.  "Basically, we were
            using anti-virus software that could not detect the latest
            generation of the virus," said spokesman Mark Christensen.
            Ironically, the company will send a free copy of its $995
            LANProtect software to anyone who received an infected LANSpool
            package.

 3/2/92     AP writer Laura Myers files a story authoritatively stating
            Michelangelo "lies dormant in an estimated 5 million IBM-compatible
            personal computers worldwide."  The story incudes quotes from John
            McAfee & Martin Tibor.

 3/2/92     Computer columnist Lawrence Magid clarifies his advice to leave
            computers on through March 7 so as to avoid Michelangelo's
            devastating effects.  "This will work in most cases, but if there
            is a power failure, many personal computers will automatically
            reboot themselves.  Thus, a power failure on March 6 would have the
            same effect as turning on the computer."

 3/2/92     ABC's Ted Koppel devotes a "Nightline" episode to Michelangelo with
            a lead-in announcement of how it "could be devastating, destroying
            the memories of millions of computers around the world...  I just
            wanted you to understand I'm coming at [this broadcast] with a
            wealth of ignorance."  John McAfee, Patricia Hoffman, and Martin
            Tibor contribute to the lead-in story, with Tibor ominously stating
            "[viruses are] the equivalent of doing germ warfare in your own
            neighborhood."

 3/3/92     A Reuters reporter files another erroneous newswire claiming
            Michelangelo spreads via computer bulletin boards.

 3/3/92     "Good Morning America" science editor Michael Gillan claims "as
            viruses go, there aren't that many reported incidents [of
            Michelangelo]...but there is an enormous fear factor."
            Unfortunately, he advises viewers to leave computers running from
            March 5 to March 7, following in the dangerous footsteps of
            computer columnist Lawrence Magid.

 3/3/92     Reuters reports Intel stock has dropped $0.50 below its $65.75
            close from the day before.  "While Intel is to unveil new versions
            of its most powerful computer chips later today -- the 486 DX2
            microprocessor -- dealers said the shares eased on news Intel had
            ceased shipment of its LANSpool 3.01 print server utility because
            some units were found to be infected with the `Michelangelo'
            virus."

 3/3/92     Another Reuters report about the Michelangelo virus mistakenly
            claims "it spreads via computer bulletin boards."

 3/3/92     CompuServe's electronic newspaper, Online Today, erroneously
            reports the Michelangelo virus spreads via online services such as
            CompuServe.  Management will later pull the embarrassing "GO
            OLT-93" story after receiving complaints from alert readers.

 3/3/92     AP writer Laura Myers files a sensationalist story on Michelangelo.
            Many TV news anchors read the first paragraph verbatim: "Do you
            know where that floppy disk has been?  Taking a page from safe sex
            manuals, experts are warning computer users to practice safe
            computing because of viruses like one called Michelangelo, which
            could trigger millions of computer crashes and erase data on hard
            disks this week."  TV anchors then follow with the authoritative
            statement: "The virus lies dormant in an estimated 5 million IBM-
            compatible personal computers worldwide and is poised to strike on
            Friday, the artist's birthdate."

 3/3/92     Reuters reporter Steve James files a newswire from Bonn, Germany
            with Michelangelo estimates in the tens of millions just for the
            United States.  "Hamburg University computer virus expert Klaus
            Brunnstein estimates that 15% of all Personal Computers (PCs) in
            Germany -- around half a million -- are infected and will lose
            their data banks on Friday.  He also said that 30% of PCs in
            Britain and 25% in the United States [about 15 million] are
            believed to have been infected by the Michelangelo virus, as a
            result of pirated computer games and infected original floppy
            discs."

 3/3/92     The AP ominously reports "the Michelangelo computer virus has
            invaded Capitol Hill, sending congressional staffers scurrying for
            a cure before Friday's trigger date."

 3/3/92     John McAfee appears in the AP daily quotes column: "This is one of
            the most widespread viruses.  It's out there in a large way and
            could cause lots of damage if it isn't stopped."  The quote comes
            from various newswire stories filed by AP reporter Laura Myers.

 3/3/92     A Reuters newswire by David Morgan claims John McAfee receives
            "about 120 reports [worldwide] of Michelangelo infection a day,"
            prompting some experts to ask how this could justify McAfee's
            previous estimates of five million.  Morgan's story also claims
            "computer viruses, which first appeared nine years ago, are now
            growing in number at a rate of about six a day" and that "some
            experts say the recent proliferation of viruses has much to do with
            the fall of communism in eastern Europe, specifically Bulgaria."

 3/3/92     A Reuters newswire says "Poland's biggest daily [newspaper] carried
            a front page story headlined `Michelangelo, The Mass Murderer, Will
            Attack On Friday.'"  Later reports will detail panicked efforts by
            Polish citizens to obtain antivirus software.

 3/4/92     Ross Greenberg, the programmer behind Microcom's Virex-PC package,
            takes an unscheduled four-day vacation.  "Nobody [in the mass
            media] likes to hear somebody say `Make a backup.  Type FDISK /MBR.
            Go away.'  Headlines such as `Virus Eats Planet Earth' sell more
            papers," he will say upon return.

 3/4/92     Numerous reporters log onto CompuServe, GEnie, America Online, and
            Prodigy to ask the same question: "Want to be interviewed for a
            story on the Michelangelo virus?"  One USA Today reporter,
            expecting an avalanche of calls, asks people not to tie up his
            phone unless they actually get hurt by the virus on March 6.

 3/4/92     The AP shifts its focus on Michelangelo after receiving phone calls
            from outraged virus experts.  Stories now begin to center on the
            fear sweeping the world rather than the virus.  Bart Ziegler files
            the first AP report with contradictory opinions of the situation:
            "`You're more likely to spill a cup of coffee on your keyboard than
            to get this virus,' said Peter Tippett, chairman of Certus
            International Inc., a maker of anti-virus software.  `There's
            definitely hysteria,' said Marianne Guntow, a computer analyst at
            the University of Chicago."

 3/4/92     Multiple UPI newswires erroneously claim Michelangelo spreads via
            computer bulletin boards.

 3/5/92     Scattered reports from around the globe say Michelangelo triggered
            a day early due to a fluke in some computers.  Their internal
            clocks ignore leap days and changed to March 1, 1992 a day
            too soon.

 3/5/92     AP reporter Robert Dvorchak files the first major newswire with a
            lead-off paragraph questioning impending sabotage estimates.
            "Computer users took precautions to disinfect their machines from a
            virus set to strike on Michelangelo's birthday Friday, although
            some experts did not expect widespread damage from the electronic
            prank."

 3/5/92     UPI reporter Joe Fasbinder files a newswire claiming the pending
            devastation from Michelangelo "is certainly expected to be in the
            millions of dollars.  In addition to the data lost to the virus,
            millions of dollars in employee time will be needed to re-install
            damaged software."

 3/6/92     V-DAY ARRIVES!? Yet while fear over Michelangelo continues, the
            major newswires echo similar stories about a fizzled event.
            Reuters: "As March 6 dawned in Asia, New Zealand reported scattered
            infections by the virus -- but there was more media hype than
            electronic havoc."  Associated Press: "Personal computer users
            reported scattered outbreaks today of the Michelangelo virus but no
            widespread damage from the much-hyped software invader."  UPI: "The
            long-awaited Michelangelo virus struck around the world Friday,
            though it did not appear to be the data disaster that some had
            predicted."

 3/6/92     A Reuters newswire claims Michelangelo "was unwittingly spread
            round the world by a single Taiwanese software copying house, Dutch
            police said on Friday.  `Taiwan is the source of the mass
            distribution of the virus,' police computer fraud expert Loek Weerd
            told Reuters.  `The Taiwanese authorities have not so far given us
            the name of the software copy house,' Weerd said."

 3/6/92     In a freak coincidence, 1,200 automated teller machines in New York
            shut down due to a power outage.  In another freak coincidence,
            three-fourths of New Jersey's computerized lottery ticket machines
            shut down because of a computer glitch.  Panicked customers
            incorrectly blame Michelangelo for the problems.

 3/6/92     Various UPI newswires finally explain Michelangelo doesn't spread
            via computer bulletin boards.

 3/6/92     Reuters now reports John McAfee "estimated at least 10,000
            computers had been hit worldwide" by Michelangelo, in stark
            contrast to previous Reuters stories where he had estimated five
            million.  Other newswire reports mention McAfee's name while
            outlining a worldwide "media hype" campaign.

 3/6/92     AP reporter Bart Ziegler files a scathing newswire: "The day of
            techno-doom turned out to be a dud...  For days, news media relayed
            forecasts of impending doom from Michelangelo.  The story had all
            the right elements: a mysterious invader with a sexy name that
            could cause havoc by a definite deadline in machines relied upon by
            millions.  The reports often failed to mention that many
            projections of potential damage were provided by companies that
            make anti-viral software and stood to benefit from the scare.
               "One source was John McAfee of McAfee Associates, the largest
            seller of virus-killing programs.  McAfee was widely quoted as
            saying Michelangelo had infected up to 5 million computers
            worldwide.  Asked Friday whether he had overstated the case, he
            said the low rate of actual Michelangelo damage was due partly to
            precautions so many PC users took."

 3/6/92     Symantec claims over 250,000 users around the world obtained a copy
            of their free Michelangelo disinfector program.  Of the online
            services, Prodigy and GEnie charged nothing for customers to
            download special antivirus packages; CompuServe pocketed its
            regular hourly connect fees for the service.

 3/6/92     Michelangelo gets another mention in the AP daily quotes column,
            this time downplaying the scare -- "`It has been overhyped, without
            question.'  Charles Rutstein, staff researcher for the National
            Computer Security Association, as computer users braced for a
            computer virus to strike on Michelangelo's birthday Friday."

 3/6/92     But while NCSA's Charles Rutstein may have called Michelangelo
            "overhyped, without question," he praised it in a public message to
            one of John McAfee's employees.  "It really doesn't matter that
            much any more [how many had the virus].  I think we can all give
            McAfee Associates...a round of applause...  Regardless of the
            amount of hype, if it helped to save one critical machine at, say,
            a hospital, I feel that the hype is justified."

 3/6/92     AT&T reports Michelangelo erased data on two -- yes, "two" --
            computers.  A spokesman claims the company operates about 250,000
            IBM PCs around the world.

 3/7/92     Another person rationalizes the hype in the AP daily quotes column:
            "`I'd say we would have had serious problems if we hadn't been so
            worried by all the hype.'  Joe Pujals, California's computer
            information manager, on the minimal effect the Michelangelo virus
            had on computers."

 3/7/92     All major newswires cease reporting about computer viruses by
            6:00am Eastern time.

 3/8/92     Microcom's Ross Greenberg returns from his abrupt vacation.

 3/8/92     No newswire service files a story about computer viruses.

 3/9/92     John McAfee resigns from the National Computer Security Association
            on the first business day after the Michelangelo media fiasco.
            Patricia Hoffman also resigns, but only from the Washington branch
            -- she does not withdraw from NCSA's Pennsylvania branch.  NCSA
            will suppress knowledge of the resignations for more than a week.

 3/9/92     No newswire service files a story about computer viruses.

 3/10/92    No newswire service files a story about computer viruses.  However,
            Reuters mentions them in passing as part of a story on counterfeit
            software: "[Microsoft] said buyers of counterfeit software risk the
            possible consequences of using defective products and contracting
            software viruses."

 3/11/92    Microcom announces it has released an updated version of its free
            program, this one with ability to disinfect the Maltese Amoeba
            virus.  It also detects (but does not disinfect) 723 other viruses.

 3/11/92    No newswire service files a story about computer viruses.

 3/12/92    John McAfee fails to appear at the fifth annual Data Processing
            Management Association conference in New York.  DPMA scheduled him
            several months in advance to speak on the computer virus threat.

 3/12/92    No newswire service files a story about computer viruses.

 3/13/92    Scheduled activation date for the Friday the 13th virus.  No
            newswire service files a story about computer viruses -- an
            interesting change considering the media's hype about Friday the
            13th in October 1989 and as a footnote to many Michelangelo-related
            stories.

 3/14/92    No newswire service files a story about computer viruses.

 3/15/92    Scheduled activation date for the Maltese Amoeba virus.  No
            newswire service files a story about computer viruses -- another
            interesting change considering the media's hype about Maltese
            Amoeba as a footnote to many Michelangelo-related stories.

 3/16/92    No newswire service files a story about computer viruses.

 3/17/92    No newswire service files a story about computer viruses.