8 Interview with Cyber Yoda
1. When did you start out in the VX scene?
I started out in the VX scene after a run in with the infamous virus, Ripper. In the spring of 1997, Ripper was running rampant in my High School's computer lab. Ripper fascinated me with how it spread so silently and kept coming back after some incompetence of the user. The virus even somehow managed to infect the AV boot disks. I thought it was hilarious. After seeing the looks on their faces I was hooked. I wanted to see if I could write a virus.
At first I was completely overwhelmed by ASM, so I decided not to learn it. Around this time Word Macro Viruses were very big in the news, so I decided to see how hard it was to write one. I didn't know how they worked so I searched the web for information on them. I ran across the name Nightmare Joker constantly. I thought he was some god of WMs. Eventually I found B0z0's Word Macro Tutorial and that was all I needed to know.
Two weeks later I had my first WM virus. Which I released on my computer lab. I left the virus on just one computer to see how it could spread. A month later the computer lab was so pissed off of my payloads and their inabilities to get rid of it, they proceeded to format all the computers and install AV on them. That didn't solve their problem, so they reformatted all the computers, installed security programs on them, literally threw away every old diskette. and went to a diskless and very problematic system. By that time I was already out of the class so I didn't care any more. They did manage to get rid of Ripper and my virus, but their memory still linger in that lab.
2. What was the name of your first virus?
I didn't name it. It periodically appended a saying and my old nick at the end of files.
3. What is your View on Destructive Pay Loads?
I don't believe Destructive Payloads show any creativity or much skills. Of course I like passive destruction such as One half. But active destruction serves no real purpose other than to render the computer and the virus inactive. I like visual payloads alot more. They can show creativity and do not harm the computer.
4. What advice could you give to newcomers to the VX scene?
Learn everything. Respect people that know something you don't, they just might teach you. Never give up.
5. What is your view on the VX/AV war?
I love the war. VX has the numbers, the skill, and the determination. AV has...well the money. Since the average user is getting more connected, and dumber. (Thanks M$) Viruses will spread faster and faster. AV can't detect every single virus in existence, so they will never win.
6. What kind of viruses do you think will be most wide spread in the future?
Viruses that make use of the newer OSes to spread themselves faster. A good deal of stealth must be used to make sure the user does not detect the virus.
7. How do you name your viruses?
I have a dictionary and thesaurus that I look through for interesting words. I then make the words sound like a noun. Usually the name of the virus incorporates some trait that I think distinguishes the virus.
8. What gave you the idea for your nick?
Well...
When I first came to undernet, my old nick was too long. So I wanted a new nick. I just saw Star Wars so I chose Yoda. Cause Yoda always had some wise are smart to say. But Yoda was already taken. Well I thought I wasn't really good enough to be like Yoda, so I added the Cyber in front of Yoda and CyberYoda was born. And I think the nick suits me pretty well. I get along with most people, have cool ideas, and give advice when it is asked for.
9. What was the VX scenes view on you when you first began?
The scene seems really open to people that have new talent and new ideas. I wasn't out to destroy people's computers and I didn't think format.com was a virus, so everybody kinda accepted me and decided to teach me.
Well after meeting Nightmare Joker on IRC, I sent him a sample of the Vicis. A virus that I was working on. He was impressed by my work enough to ask me to join SLAM. I later decided that WordBasic was too limited of a language, so I decided to learn ASM.
With lots of patience and help from VXers I learned ASM. Now all I have to do is write code that everybody knows I can produce.
