worm
(From "Tapeworm" in John Brunner's
novel "The Shockwave Rider", via {XEROX PARC}) A program that
propagates itself over a network, reproducing itself as it
goes. Compare {virus}. Nowadays the term has negative
connotations, as it is assumed that only {crackers} write
worms.
Perhaps the best-known example was the {Great Worm}.
Compare {Trojan horse}.
[{Jargon File}]
(1996-09-17)