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From: CHESS@YKTVMV.BITNET (David M. Chess)
Newsgroups: comp.virus
Subject: re: Virus writing - crime?
Message-ID: <0003.8905301959.AA06345@ubu.CC.Lehigh.EDU>
Date: 30 May 89 20:14:29 GMT
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>    ... but then i thought that if you do not copy diskettes you do
> not have viruses. Diskette copying is a crime, ofcourse, so...

As I'm sure other folks will point out as well, there are two errors
here.  First, it's not true that "if you do not copy diskettes you do
not have viruses".  Viruses can spread in all sorts of ways, including
buying diskettes with legitimate software on them, getting and running
public domain executable files, and even just from putting a diskette
into an infected machine and doing a DIR on it!

Second, it's not true that "diskette copying is a crime".  Some
instances of diskette copying (and file copying) are violations of
copyright laws.  But many are not; many programs are in the public
domain, or may be copied in some circumstances without violating the
license; there are All Sorts of Terms and Conditions out there, and by
no means is "diskette copying" always a "crime".

I think it's very (very very) important to keep firmly in mind the
fact that viruses typically spread through legitimate actions by
legitimate users; the myth that viruses are only spread by grubby
criminals and law-breaking teenagers trading pirated software is
potentially a very dangerous one.

OBEYING THE LAW DOES NOT MAKE YOU IMMUNE FROM COMPUTER VIRUSES,
and having a virus does not mean that you have broken the law!

DC