http://www.northcountrygazette.org/articles/050906SpamAttacks.html

 

"Botmaster" Gets 15 Years For Spam Attacks

LOS ANGELES---Concluding the first prosecution of its kind in the United States, a well-known member of the "botmaster underground" was sentenced Tuesday to nearly five years in prison for profiting from his use of "botnets" - armies of compromised computers - that he used to launch destructive attacks, to send huge quantities of spam across the Internet and to receive surreptitious installations of adware.

 

Jeanson James Ancheta, 20, of Downey, California, was sentenced to 57 months in federal prison by United States District Judge R. Gary Klausner in Los Angeles. During the sentencing hearing, Judge Klausner characterized Ancheta's crimes as "extensive, serious and sophisticated." The prison term is the longest-known sentence for a defendant who spread computer viruses.

 

It's about time they start putting some of these guys in the slammer.

awesome... I've never understood this type of crime. What possible personal benefits could you gain by spreading viruses?

 

In my mind, this type of crime may be akin to terrorism, because I see no other reason for it.

do they still have the key or did they make him eat it?

awesome... I've never understood this type of crime. What possible personal benefits could you gain by spreading viruses?

 

In my mind' date=' this type of crime may be akin to terrorism, because I see no other reason for it.[/quote']

 

Presumably, if he's spreading adware, there's financial incentive involved.

^money, even without spreading adware.

 

http://www.securityfocus.com/infocus/1838 <-- scroll down to 'The profitable parasite', roughly half-way down the page.

 

By renting the botnet out for spamming, malware installs, (either onto the infected machines, or using them to attempt infections onto other machines), hosting stuff, or by using them to DDoS sites unless they pay you money, a large botnet is a big earner.

awesome... I've never understood this type of crime. What possible personal benefits could you gain by spreading viruses?

 

In my mind' date=' this type of crime may be akin to terrorism, because I see no other reason for it.[/quote']

 

More like vandalism or invasion of privacy. Lets not spread that word any more thin than it has been already.

It's about time they start putting some of these guys in the slammer.

Prisoners don't have email access, do they?

 

With the way people feel about malware and spam, he's lucky he didn't get the control-alt-delete penalty.

Prisoners don't have email access' date=' do they?

 

With the way people feel about malware and spam, he's lucky he didn't get the control-alt-delete penalty.[/quote']

 

Nah, he'll just be quarantined, like I quarantined his virus.. oh snap!