DATE=5/14/2000
TYPE=BACKGROUND REPORT
TITLE=LOVE BUG - PHILIPPINES
NUMBER=5-46311
BYLINE=AMY BICKERS
DATELINE=MANILA
CONTENT=
VOICED AT:
INTRO: Across the Philippines, people are expressing
surprise and dismay that a 23-year old college drop-
out who lives in Manila may have launched the
most potent virus in cyber history. As Amy Bickers
reports from Manila, the case has raised concerns
about the ease with which viruses can be created and
the lack of legislation for dealing with cybercrime.
TEXT: As investigators pour over evidence in the
search for more clues, the nation is trying to come to
grips with the fact that the ruinous Love Bug virus
may be the work of one or more computer students.
Last week, 23-year old computer student Onel de Guzman
admitted he may have accidentally released the
program, which struck e-mail systems from Tokyo to
London to New York. He is a possible suspect along
with at least three other people. Police are scouring
the diskettes they took from Mr. de Guzman's
apartment to try to gather proof. The computer
allegedly used to launch the virus is missing and
officials have said that a lack of evidence could
hamper their work.
Alan Robles is the editor of a Hot Manila, a website
devoted to current affairs in the Philippines. He says
that there is a thriving community of virus writers
in the Philippines. But he notes that the ILOVEYOU
bug was able to go so far so fast because of its now
famous subject heading.
/// ROBLES ACT ///
Here, people were duped by opening the file on the
pretense that it was a
love letter. My point of view is that a person who
thinks of love as an angle to con people into doing
something can only be a Filipino, since we are
supposed to be the Latins of Asia.
/// END ACT ///
Mr. Robles says many people here are embarrassed about
the scandal, which has caused up to ten billions of
dollars in damage for business and governments
around the world through the destruction of countless
computer files.
Among those most concerned is Manuel Abad, Executive
Vice President of the A-M-A computer school where Onel
de Guzman was a student.
/// END ACT ///
It was a surprise to us. It was a surprise to us that
how come a student like this would do a program that
would go all over the world. I am more
surprised about the motive. The motive for doing that,
to launch a virus, that would exponentially increase,
and penetrate practically all systems, to my last
recollection in the reports, it could have affected 45
million internet users.
/// END ACT ///
Mr. de Guzman failed to graduate after his thesis
proposal was rejected. It was based on a program
designed to steal computer passwords and has similar
characteristics to the love-bug virus.
The school says that it is launching disciplinary
proceedings against Mr. de Guzman that could stop him
from returning to classes and eventually graduating,
as he has said he would like to do. School authorities
also say they are probing GRAMMERSoft, a shadowy
underground group of computer students. Members
allegedly took fees for doing other pupils'
assignments. The GRAMMERSoft name appears in the
program for the Love Bug virus. Police have not yet
disclosed the identities of members other than Mr. de
Guzman.
Carlos Caabay is the Deputy Director of the National
Bureau of Investigation, the country's detective
agency. He acknowledges that a lack of laws in the
Philippines covering cybercrime has slowed their work
and could have led to the destruction of key evidence.
The country has no law which specifically makes
the dissemination of a computer virus illegal.
/// CAABAY ACT ///
I think this is an eye opener and a test case that
will be considered by our congress in the passage of a
law that will cover this kind of computer crimes.
// END ACT ///
Mr. Caabay says that his agency believes that Mr. de
Guzman sent the virus into cyberspace to avenge his
failure to graduate. But a dearth of evidence may stop
them from proving it.
The Philippine Congress is now moving towards enacting
legislation that will cover information technology, so
that the next time a computer bug bites, they
will be able to take swift action. (SIGNED)
NEB/AB/PLM
14-May-2000 02:56 AM EDT (14-May-2000 0656 UTC)
NNNN
Source: Voice of America
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