Can mainframe computers be susceptible to computer viruses?
Yes. Numerous experiments have shown that computer viruses spread very quickly and effectively on mainframe systems. However, to our knowledge, no non-research computer virus has been seen on mainframe systems. (The Internet worm of November 1988 was not a computer virus by most definitions, although it had some virus-like characteristics.) Computer viruses are actually a special case of something else called “malicious logic”, and other forms of malicious logic — notably Trojan horses — are far quicker, more effective, and harder to detect than computer viruses. Nevertheless, on personal computers many more viruses are written than Trojans. There are two reasons for this: (1) Since a virus propagates, the number of users to which damage can be caused is much greater than in the case of a Trojan; (2) It’s almost impossible to trace the source of a virus since viruses are not attached to any particular program.
