Crazy Story Of Man Who Created World¡¯s First Ransomware Attack On A Floppy Disk
The floppy disks were distributed to the mail attendees of the World Health Organisation AIDS conference in Stockholm in 1989.
Today, most of us have come across ransomware attacks -- cyberattacks that lock people out of their computers/devices in exchange for ransom, failure for doing so resulting in the deletion of all the personal data that the victim holds dear to their heart.
The year 2020 has been regarded as the worst year to date for ransomware attacks (according to the US Justice Department) , with most people working from home and the pandemic bringing all of us online.
CNN via Eddy Willems
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However, while today, ransomware attacks occur through files or emails that you download, the first-ever ransomware attack was actually distributed on 5.25-inch floppy disks.
Ransomware on a floppy disk
The infected floppy disks were distributed to the mail attendees of the World Health Organisation AIDS conference in Stockholm in 1989, according to a report by the Atlantic. The disk claimed to be a computer-based questionnaire to help determine the risk of a patient contracting AIDS and managed to distribute 20,000 copies in 90 nations.
A few days after the floppy disk was inserted, (mostly after 89 times a PC was booted) the computers locked up with a red screen. The message appearing on their screens demanded them to send $189 in an envelope to a PO box in Panama.
Palo Alto Networks via the Atlantic
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The virus locked the contents of the victims¡¯ computers and would unlock them only in return for a ¡°licensing fee.¡± It encrypted the filenames, rendering most computers unusable. Security researchers however soon shared antidotes to unlock the systems from the virus.
The ransomware creator was soon caught
The creator of this virus, Joseph Popp, an evolutionary biologist by profession (who was conducting AIDS research at the time) was soon apprehended and charged with multiple counts of blackmail. To this day, he is regarded as the inventor of ransomware.
When arrested, he allegedly claimed in court that he was going to use the money to donate to AIDS research. However, another Guardian report highlighted that this aggressive move was a reaction to being rejected for a job opportunity with WHO.
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He was later ruled unfit to stand trial after reports revealed that he wore condoms on his nose and curlers on his beard to protect his body from radiation. He was deported to the US where he remained free till he passed away in 2007.
