ILOVEYOU virus cost $10B - creator walked as Philippines had no hacking law

On May 4, 2000, a computer worm spread across the world within hours. It arrived as an email with the subject line 'ILOVEYOU' and an attachment named 'LOVE-LETTER-FOR-YOU.TXT.vbs'. Windows' default setting to hide known file extensions made the .vbs file appear as a harmless text file. When opened, the worm overwrote media files, sent itself to every contact in the victim's address book, and stole dial-up internet passwords by downloading a trojan.

The worm spread so fast that it infected an estimated 10% of all internet-connected computers, forcing the Pentagon, CIA, British Parliament, and major corporations to shut down their email systems. The total damage was estimated at approximately $10 billion in cleanup costs, lost productivity, and system repairs. The worm's creator was a 22-year-old dropout named Onel de Guzman from the Philippines, who had designed it to steal dial-up passwords so he could access the internet for free.

When the Philippine authorities tracked de Guzman down, they discovered a problem: the country had no laws against computer hacking. All charges were dropped. The case prompted the Philippines to pass its first cybercrime law, and the ILOVEYOU worm became a landmark event in the history of computer security, demonstrating how a simple social engineering attack could bring down the world's largest institutions.