It was March 26, 1999. People were still adjusting to using email on a regular basis, and Microsoft Outlook had only been around for a few years. A man named David L. Smith decided to capitalise on the confusion surrounding the internet and email when he created the first successful email-aware computer virus. The malware — the Melissa virus — was one of the first to get public attention because it caused more than $80 million in damage.
Twenty years later, not-so-sweet Melissa, reportedly named after a Florida stripper, is seen as a wakeup call with a silver lining. Computer users were shocked into awareness aware of their vulnerabilities and forced some to reckon with those weaknesses.
Falanx Group Ltd (LON:FLX), through its subsidiaries, provides cyber defence and intelligence services to blue chip and government clients worldwide. It operates through Falanx Cyber Defence and Falanx Intelligence divisions.
