February 11th

On this day - February 11th 2001- Anna Kournikova virus was written 

This computer worm was written by a Dutch programmer, Jan de Wit. The worm spread trough email and contained an attachment named "AnnaKournikova.jpg.vbs" the message reads "Hi: check this!". For the observant of you its obvious that the attachment is not a picture but a visual basic script file. The file was a program that got all your adresses from your outlook and then sent itself to all the adresses. The program does minimal damages on the system unlike the similar ILOVEYOU virus. By the time De Wit realised what he had created it was to late, he turned himself in to the police on February 14th. In the trial against De Wit the FBI submitted evidence and suggested that the worm caused 166 000USD in damages. De Wit claimed that he made the worm "without thinking and without overseeing the consequences" and denied intent to cause damages. His sentence was 150 hours of community service or 75 days in jail. In the popular tv series Friends episode "The one in Barbados" Chandler checks his email and the harddisk is erased. When asked what the email said he says "naked pictures of Anna Kournikova" however the computer was a Macintosh that would not have reacted to the worm and the original worm did not cause such damages. 

Anna Kournikova working on her backhand

  

October 26th

On this day - 26th October 1977 - Was smallpox eradicated 

The somali Ali Maow Maalin is the last human to have been naturally infected with (Variola Minor) smallpox. He contracted the disease on October 26th 1977. He survived, and the world health organisation declared the virus as officially eradicated two years later. Smallpox is believed to first have developed among humans around 10.000 BC. By the end of the 18th century died around 400.000 europeans annually. The eradication of this disease is considered one of the vaccination programs greatest success and 26th or October is by WHO considered the anniversary of the eradication of smallpox. 

Smallpox Vaccine