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View Full Version : U.S. charges Calif. man in computer botnet case


View Full Version : U.S. charges Calif. man in computer botnet case


soulxtc
February 13th, 2006, 08:17 AM
Attack shut ICU, disabled doctors' pagers at Seattle hospital

FEBRUARY 13, 2006 (REUTERS) - A California man was indicted on federal charges of creating a robot-like network of hijacked computers that helped him and two others bring in $100,000 for installing unwanted ad software.

The indictment from a federal grand jury in Seattle on Friday also accuses Christopher Maxwell, 20, and two unidentified conspirators of crippling Seattle's Northwest Hospital with a "botnet" attack in January 2005.

Authorities say the hospital attack caused $150,000 in damages, shut down the intensive care unit and disabled doctors' pagers.

"Some people consider botnets a mere annoyance or inconvenience for consumers, but they are highly destructive," U.S. Attorney John McKay said in a statement. "In this case, the impact of the botnet could have been deadly."


READ ARTICLE (http://www.computerworld.com/securitytopics/security/story/0,10801,108643,00.html)