Interview with Quantum
by Sepultura

WHO ARE YOU, WHAT DO YOU DO IN THE VX SCENE?

I go under the nick QuantumG, previously Quantum of VLAD and I do absolutely nothing in the vx scene except possibly lurking on irc and annoying people who actually DO do something.

WHAT MADE YOU ENTER THE VIRUS SCENE? HOW LONG HAVE YOU BEEN A VIRUS CODER?

Metabolis and Qark befriended me (what can I say, they have good taste) and saw that they could twist my somewhat unproductive graphics coding skills to virus coding. After I learnt the basics Qark started to teach me some more complex stuff like TSR, COM/EXE and that was generally my ticket into VLAD. My first virus, named Tashya Yar, was remotely impressive as it was my first Full Stealth virus (disinfect on open re-infect on close) but it started the long honoured tradition of not being tested nearly enough and thus having major bugs - which lead to Tashya Yar mark II, which appeared in VLAD#4 my first VLAD release. I've been a virus coder since about the release of VLAD#3, you figure it out.

WHAT SPECIFICALLY ARE YOUR INTERESTS IN VIRUSES?

Anything experimental will get me interested. New platforms and multi-platform stuff generally and although I've never coded a polymorphic engine, I'm slightly interested in that.

WHAT DO YOU THINK YOUR GREATEST ACHIEVEMENTS IN THE SCENE WERE?

I dont know, consistently producing buggy code? Heh, I'd have to say the world's first win95 virus (the betas worked!) and the media scare it produced. Although I've received a lot of flack over that, we're still awaiting a TSR win95 virus (this issue?).

SAME QUESTION, BUT FOR VLAD

same answer but for VLAD.

WHAT'S YOUR GENERAL IMPRESSION OF THE VX SCENE?

err.. we all start out excited at the prospects, we code till we stop, we try new and exciting ideas, we run out of ideas, we lurk around on irc search for something to do, we become warez pups, we become pr0n kiddies, we become hackers, we become burnt out hackers, we become halflife.

SAME QUESTION, BUT AV INSTEAD.

I wouldn't have a clue. They begin hating us, they discover we're ok and try to be our friends, we dis them endlessly, and all the while they keep misinforming the media and raking in the cash.

WHO DO YOU RESPECT MOST IN THE VX SCENE? (CODERS, GROUPS, ZINES)

It's hard to say cause I'm so disconnected from the scene myself. I can generalize that I respect anyone that can just keep on coming up with new stuff and not get bored of it all. Some of the most fantastic, although utterly useless for any other purpose, stuff has come out of virus coders - you have to know your stuff and that's something worth respecting.

SAME BUT DISRESPECT

err.. halflife.. nah.. just kiddin'.. I dont hate anyone in the vx scene really except possibly the irc warriors.

SAME TWO QUESTIONS AGAIN BUT AV INSTEAD.

respect: the small companies that do all the work and dont fuck the user around
disrespect: bonchev
undecided: Sarah Gordon, she spreads my name but seeing I've never read what she writes about me I have no idea whether she is friend or foe.

FAVOURITE VIRUSES AND WHY?

I dont collect or even look at viruses so I wouldn't have a clue.

FAVOURITE AV PROG'S AND WHY?

AVP appears to be the best of late, TBAV is a close second and I havnt looked at too much of anything else.

TELL US ABOUT YOU AS A PERSON.. WHAT ARE YOUR HOBBIES? WHAT DO YOU READ? MOVIES? MUSIC?

err.. computers, martial arts, scifi, writing, daydreaming. My favourite movie is called "Ford Fairlane" and I'll listen to just about any kind of music although I can only handle large quantities of Red Hot Chilli Peppers and Crowded House

WHAT (IF ANY) SCENES ARE YOU INVOLVED IN BESIDES THE VIRUS SCENE?

umm.. I'd have to say the hacking scene and the veg-on-irc scene that is becoming all too popular.

DO YOUR FAMILY/FRIENDS KNOW THAT YOU HACK/CODE VIRUSES? DO YOU CARE?

my family knew from day one that I was getting into viruses and when I got into hacking the general response was "be careful" which I attempt to be.. most of my friends wouldn't know what hacking/computer viruses are and thus wouldn't care but of those that do, they know and although they tut in disappointment it usually comes up as a talking point when I'm being introduced to people which is kinda annoying.

HAVE YOU EVER HAD TROUBLE WITH THE LAW/EMPLOYERS? DO YOU WORRY THAT YOU WILL?

I worry about the law, yes. But the only real contact I've had with them was some rumours that they were looking for me when bizatch/boza was big news.

DO YOU THINK THE VIRUS SCENE IS TO PARANOID? I MEAN AFTER ALL WE ARE ONLY WRITING VIRUSES

in some countries that's a serious offense and the mythical "all-good" society that the governments of the world cater for see it as just.. we're paranoid today to look after tomorrow.. I dont think you can be too paranoid. personally I enjoy the freedom to be able to do something that may turn up in the media and not have police knocking on my door
harassing me for something that is not yet illegal.

DO YOU THINK THE AV HAVE TOO MUCH HYPE?

the AV feed on hype. It's funny to see professionals coming up with portraits of a virus writer and the public blindly accepts it.. if the media did half the amount of research it claimed to do AV profits would plummet.

WHAT DO YOU CONSIDER A SUCCESSFUL VIRUS? A SMALL ONE? A COMPLEX ONE? A SPREAD, COMMON ONE? A DESTRUCTIVE ONE? ONE WITH MEDIA HYPE?

one that spreads well and is not easily picked up by the AV.. and in the event that it does it gives then a hell of a hard time.. a little media hype is not bad but I think that should be a result of it working well.. not AV induced hype.. I cant say destructiveness is a good thing.

WHAT DO YOU CONSIDER THE PERFECT VIRUS?

one that never gets caught, can detect it's own detection and remove itself, one that can change to a changing environment and , if one day possible, learn to infect new filetypes and platforms.

WHERE DO YOU THINK THE VX SCENE IS HEADING?

nowhere fast, but it's getting there.

WHERE DO YOU THINK THE AV SCENE IS HEADING?

totalitarian suppression of the truth.

ARE YOU ELITE?

hell yeah.

[END]