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Archive.org launches The Malware Museum to preserve DOS viruses

The Malware Museum is a collection of malware programs, usually viruses, that were distributed in the 1980s and 1990s on home computers. Once they infected a system, they would sometimes show animation or messages that you had been infected. Through the use of emulations, and additionally removing any destructive routines within the viruses, this collection allows you to experience virus infection of decades ago with safety.

The Malware Museum, hosted by Archive.org, currently includes 65 items in its collection. You can click a malware example and there you can see the virus in action through a video of the malware running in DOSbox, a screenshot, an animated gif, or other download options. The site is a neat way to collect some old viruses. They do not do a lot compared to the more complex malware today and for some it might bring back some nostalgia. Check out the Malware Museum to see some DOS viruses in action.

The Flame MS-DOS virus is pictured above.