[ILUG] The 1988 Internet Worm

[Paul J Collins]

>>>>> "HMG" == Hugh Mc Gauran <hugh.mcgauran at skynet.ie> writes:

    HMG> considering that this was the first major attack on the
    HMG> internet I am assuming that a lot of ye have some form of
    HMG> opinion on the matter.

It was more of an accident than an attack.  Morris had written the
worm to spread silently and with low impact.  The explosive
reproduction that the program performed was the result of an
arithmetical error.

    HMG> any help would be greatly appreciated.

The ACM published a report on the Worm that detailed its method of
propagation, the damage done, and the bug I mentioned.  I don't recall
a date, or in which of the ACM's publications the report appeared.

    HMG> One theory we have on the ethics part of it is:

    HMG> The kid who did it (Robert Morris) was the son of an ex-Chief
    HMG> scientist of the NSA...maybe he did it to get at his father..

What the hell has that got to do with computer ethics?  "Computer
Ethics" is about things such as whether it is okay to login to a
computer without authroization as long as you don't touch anything,
whether disclosure of vulnerabilities that enable attacks to be
written is itself unehtical, and so on.

Motivation is a matter for courts of law, and sensationalistic
journalists.

-- 
"Pity has no place at my table."
      -- Dr Hannibal Lecter