The First Computer Virus in History The story of the first computer virus takes us back to the early days of computing when the concept of malicious software was virtually unheard of. The first recognized computer virus , known as "Creeper" , emerged in 1971 , making it a historical landmark in cybersecurity. The Birth of Creeper Creeper was created by Bob Thomas , a programmer at BBN Technologies, not as an act of malice but as an experiment to explore the idea of self-replicating programs. Creeper was designed for the ARPANET , the precursor to today’s internet. How Creeper Worked Creeper was not a destructive virus. It was more of an early exploration into what would later become the field of computer viruses. It was programmed to: Infect Systems : Creeper moved between computers connected to the ARPANET. Display a Message : On infected systems, it displayed the message: "I’m the creeper: catch me if you can!" Creeper did not cause harm or steal dat...