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{{Infobox person
{{Infobox person
| name = Chris Pile
| name = Christopher Pile
⚫
| birth_date = {{birth based on age as of date|26|1995|November|16}}
| image = <!-- just the filename, without the File: or Image: prefix or enclosing [[brackets]] -->
| alt =
| caption =
⚫
| birth_date = {{birth year and age|1969}}
| birth_place =
| death_date = <!-- {{Death date and age|df=yes|YYYY|MM|DD|YYYY|MM|DD}} or {{Death-date and age|death date†|birth date†}} -->
| death_place =
| nationality = [[British people|British]]
| occupation = Programmer
| occupation = Programmer
| years_active =
| known_for = Created the computer viruses 'Pathogen' and 'Queeg'
| known_for = Created the computer viruses 'Pathogen' and 'Queeg'
| notable_works =
}}
}}


'''Christopher Pile''' (born {{birth based on age as of date|26|1995|November|16|noage=1}}, also known as "the Black Baron") is a [[programmer]] who was sentenced to 18 months in jail in 1995 for creating and spreading two [[computer virus]]es called Pathogen and Queeg.<ref>{{cite news|url=https://www.independent.co.uk/news/mad-boffin-jailed-over-computer-virus-havoc-1582105.html |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20110626115018/http://www.independent.co.uk/news/mad-boffin-jailed-over-computer-virus-havoc-1582105.html |url-status=dead |archive-date=26 June 2011 |title='Mad boffin' jailed over computer virus havoc |work=The Independent|last=Victor|first=Peter|date=1995-11-16 |accessdate=2011-02-03}}</ref> While not the first person conviction for creating and spreading computer viruses, Pile's case was the first "widely covered and published computer crime case that ended in a jail sentence."<ref name="kizza-2005">{{cite book|last=Kizza|first=Joseph Migga|year=2005|title=Computer Network Security|publisher=Springer|doi=10.1007/0-387-25228-2_3|isbn=978-0-387-25228-5|chapter=Security Threats to Computer Networks|pages=77–107}}</ref>
'''Christopher Pile''', a.k.a. '''The Black Baron''',{{Citation needed|date=January 2023}} is a British [[programmer]], born in 1969, living in [[Plymouth]], [[Devon]]. He created the [[computer virus]]es 'Pathogen' and 'Queeg'. He was also a prolific programmer of the [[ZX Spectrum]] and MGT [[SAM Coupé]] 8-bit home computers, writing Pro-DOS, a [[CP/M]] [[emulator]] for the SAM, an implementation of the [[arcade game]] [[Defender (video game)|Defender]], and the [[Dr Kode]] assembler for the ZX Spectrum, as well as [[Dr Scroll]] VTX5000 modem software.


In addition to the two viruses, he also created Smeg (short for "Simulated Metamorphic Encryption enGine"<ref>{{cite book|author1-last=Chen|author1-first=Thomas M.|author2-last=Robert|author2-first=Jean-Marc|title=Statistical Methods in Computer Security|chapter=The Evolution of Viruses and Worms|isbn=978-0-429-13161-5|year=2004|doi=10.1201/9781420030884|editor-last=Chen|editor-first=William W.S.}}</ref>), a software tool that he used to hide Pathogen and Queeg from the antivirus software of the time. Smeg was written in a way that allowed it to be also used by others to hide and spread their own viruses.<ref name="kizza-2005" />
From the mid to late 1980s Pile was writing Z80 code for the ZX Spectrum. Many of his programs were utilities: they included the Dr Kode editor/assembler, the Ultra208 high-capacity disk formatter for the ZX Spectrum +3 and software to allow any ZX Spectrum equipped with a VTX5000 modem to access the many on-line Bulletin Board systems (BBS) which were popular at the time.{{Citation needed|date=May 2011}} Pile also had several utility programs published in ''[[Your Sinclair]]'' magazine, including graphics routines for fast circle drawing and [[flood fill]]. Pile was also a contributor to the game hacking pages within the magazine.{{Citation needed|date=May 2011}}

Around 1990 Pile turned his attention to the newly released SAM Coupé home computer and wrote two pieces of software for it: ProDOS (a CP/M implementation) and a faithful clone of the arcade video game ''[[Defender (1981 video game)|Defender]]''.{{Citation needed|date=May 2011}}

In 1995, Pile was imprisoned for 18 months after being convicted of writing two PC computer viruses known as ''SMEG.Pathogen'' and ''SMEG.Queeg'' and the virus [[polymorphic engine]] known as ''[[Smeg Virus Construction Kit|SMEG]]''.

The SMEG engine was produced as an object file which non-programmers could download and trivially link into an existing virus which, in turn, would make the resulting virus polymorphic and much harder to detect using anti-virus software. SMEG was also the first polymorphic engine with the ability to generate random CALLs to randomly generated subroutines within its encryptors. This gave the generated polymorphic code a more realistic appearance. SMEG also used exclusively 8086 machine language instructions, which meant it ran cleanly on any 80x86 based PC.{{Citation needed|date=May 2011}}

The name "Queeg", SMEG and Pathogen, as well as some of the virus activation messages, are from the British TV show [[Red Dwarf]].<ref name=independent/>

Towards the late 1990s Pile spent some time as a commercial games programmer, working mainly on the Nintendo Game Boy, Sega Game Gear and Master System consoles. In late 1997 Pile programmed a PC emulator for the arcade game Asteroids by Atari.{{Citation needed|date=May 2011}}


==References==
==References==
{{Reflist|refs=
{{Reflist}}
<ref name=independent>{{cite web|url=https://www.independent.co.uk/news/mad-boffin-jailed-over-computer-virus-havoc-1582105.html |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20110626115018/http://www.independent.co.uk/news/mad-boffin-jailed-over-computer-virus-havoc-1582105.html |url-status=dead |archive-date=26 June 2011 |title='Mad boffin' jailed over computer virus havoc |work=The Independent |date=1995-11-16 |accessdate=2011-02-03}}
</ref>}}


==External links==
==External links==

Revision as of 15:27, 23 November 2023

For other people named Chris Pile, see Chris Pile (disambiguation).
Christopher Pile
Born1968 or 1969 (age 54–55)
OccupationProgrammer
Known forCreated the computer viruses 'Pathogen' and 'Queeg'

Christopher Pile (born 1968 or 1969, also known as "the Black Baron") is a programmer who was sentenced to 18 months in jail in 1995 for creating and spreading two computer viruses called Pathogen and Queeg.[1] While not the first person conviction for creating and spreading computer viruses, Pile's case was the first "widely covered and published computer crime case that ended in a jail sentence."[2]

In addition to the two viruses, he also created Smeg (short for "Simulated Metamorphic Encryption enGine"[3]), a software tool that he used to hide Pathogen and Queeg from the antivirus software of the time. Smeg was written in a way that allowed it to be also used by others to hide and spread their own viruses.[2]

References

  1. ^ Victor, Peter (16 November 1995). "'Mad boffin' jailed over computer virus havoc". The Independent. Archived from the original on 26 June 2011. Retrieved 3 February 2011.
  2. ^ a b Kizza, Joseph Migga (2005). "Security Threats to Computer Networks". Computer Network Security. Springer. pp. 77–107. doi:10.1007/0-387-25228-2_3. ISBN 978-0-387-25228-5.
  3. ^ Chen, Thomas M.; Robert, Jean-Marc (2004). "The Evolution of Viruses and Worms". In Chen, William W.S. (ed.). Statistical Methods in Computer Security. doi:10.1201/9781420030884. ISBN 978-0-429-13161-5.

External links

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