KLEZ - antedate virus, worm and infect vis-a-vis computers?

[James A. Landau]

In a message dated 8/20/02 12:10:44 PM Eastern Daylight Time,
philip at CS.BRANDEIS.EDU writes:

> Just to keep things on topic, what's the first known usages of the
>  words virus, worm and infect in relation to computers?

from a "BBS" (computer bulletin board service) operated by the National
Bureau of Standards
<begin quote>
MSG 04611 IS 06 LINE(S) ON 12/09/83 FROM CABLE PAIR
TO HACKERS RE: WORMS

LOOKING FOR WORM TYPE PROGRAMS.  SPECIFICALLY VIRUS5 AND
LUCIFER.  DO NOT LEAVE MESSAGE HERE.  CALL
313-538-8444.  THANKS.
                         CABLE PAIR
P.S.  IF YOU DON'T KNOW WHAT I AM TALKING ABOUT, THEN
DON'T ASK....
<end quote>

This is NOT the first use of "worm", since when I spotted this message a few
days after 12/09/83 (I printed it out on the back of a discarded letter that
was dated 12/9/83 and which had to have taken several days to reach the
recycling bin) I  recognized the meaning.  I printed it out not for security
reasons but as a piece of exotica---ironically it turned up this very morning
when I went through that folder looking for more alleged computer proverbs
for Fred Shapiro.

       - Jim Landau