Copycat, the maleware shadow

Copycat.

————— May 3rd, 2008.

———————

I was browsing on youtube, carefully scanning the ‘recommended’ section. Everything had been normal, and the lack of homework gave me a rather large amount of free time to do my thing.

As if I was destined to see this, a particular video caught my eye.

’gninevedoog‘ it read. Rather confusing, but curiosity got the better of me at most. The thumbnail was an eerie-looking face with split teeth that peeled at the edges. The extremely dark face was illuminated by a hidden candle light, or at least I thought.

It came to my realisation that ‘gnivevedoog’ was ‘goodevening’ backwards. Surprising that I didn’t realise before. The video continued for a good hour while I occupied myself with drawing. The video flashed for about 0.5 seconds, so I couldn’t catch what was featured in it. Again, it flashed, and I was only a split second late before it returned to the familiar image of the haunting eyes and teeth.

Nothing really happened at all that night. Before I settled down to sleep, I realised with a spaek that I had left the computer on the video.

Whatever, I’m too tired to get back up. I have to go to work tomorrow.

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I woke up pretty early, and as I struggled around to reach my clock, I managed to stumble out of bed.

Drowsily, I stood up and rested my hand on the half oval button of it.

5:22

I pulled on my dressig gown (bath robes), and high-kneed down the stairs to where my PC was.

My webcam was on?

Strange.

I headed over to youtube, in hopes that maybe the channel, whatever the name was, had uploaded. I looked up the video I previously watched, and clicked on the channel name.

A new video, titled ‘was that you?’.

Uh, weird much? I had a look at it, and hovered my mouse over the video.

Time stopped.

It was my house, with someone running across past the computer.

That wasn’t me.

I raced to the TV remote, and switched it on. My television somehow calmed me, as if someone else was there with me.

‘106, BBC News’

Over and over again, I convinced myself one thing.

Someone with editing skills had installed malware to capture my webcam, and edited in someone running across from- I don’t know, whatever it was.

“Shocking footage of malware storming the UK bring many computers down permanently.”

Wait, maybe this is it. What a coincidence.

“An anonymous malware installer has been terrorising Britain by installing dangerous script that is able to access any model of webcam. Victims have been terrorized, and sometimes kidnapped by the suspect that is still on the loose.” The news reported began, looking rather..... pale.

Creeeeackkkk

“Who’s there?!” Instinct made me grab the sharpest object I could find, that being a knife from my brunch yesterday.

I waited in the exact same spot for ten minutes, shaking violently and uncontrollably.

I turned around once again.

WAIT-

Something was breathing on me.