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- A laptop totally infested with six of the worst computer viruses and malware known to man was auctioned for $ 1.345 million on Monday.
- The types of viruses on the laptop would have caused $ 95 billion in financial damage worldwide.
- Internet connectivity and laptop ports have been disabled, which means that the malware in question has no way to spread … hopefully.
- Visit the Business Insider home page for more stories.
A 2008 Samsung NC10 notebook running Windows XP has just been auctioned for $ 1.345 million.
Although this 11-year-old machine may have nostalgic value for some, this machine is so special (and expensive) that it contains live specimens of six of the most dangerous computer viruses that exist.
In a live stream on Twitch, the laptop can be seen on and run viruses and malware. But the laptop was not sold as a cyber-weapon on a darkweb black market.
This laptop infected with the virus is an artistic installation called "The Persistence of Chaos" of the artist Guo O Dong.
According to a website promoting the play, Dong is a " contemporary internet artist whose work critically reviews the extremely online culture of nowadays.The persistence of chaos was created in collaboration with Deep Instinct, artist and cybersecurity company, who provided the technical expertise and malicious software necessary to perform the work in a secure environment. "
Dong said the viruses contained in the laptop had generated financial losses of $ 95 billion. damage. It is unlikely that the laptop itself was the cause of the $ 95 billion damage. It is more likely that the viruses that it contains are the same ones that are known to have caused damage around the world.
"The sale of malicious software for operational purposes is illegal in the United States"
The Dong laptop is "endowed with a battery", which means its ability to connect Internet has been disabled. Its ports have also been disabled and USB sticks can no longer be used to transfer its threats.
The terms of the auction also indicate that "The sale of malware for operational purposes is illegal in the US As a buyer, you acknowledge that this work represents a potential safety hazard. By submitting an offer, you agree and acknowledge that you are purchasing this work in the form of art or for academic reasons, and that you do not intend to disseminate any malware. "[19459012Ofcourseanyonewithaveragecomputerknowledgewouldhavenotroublefindingawaytoextractvirusesfromtheharddrivedespitethefactthatthelaptopitselfisoverused
The details of the auction, including the sale price, were as follows: reported by Dong himself on his website. It is therefore interesting to take the claims with a grain of salt until the sale can be verified. Deep Instinct, the company Dong joined with, did not immediately return a request for comment.
The buyer of The Persistence of Chaos is anonymous. Hoping that Dong's dangerous art did not fall into the wrong hands.
Discover the infamous computer viruses that run on the world's most dangerous laptop:
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