Last updated at: (Beijing Time) Sunday, August 31, 2003
US Teenager Arrested for 'Blaster' Internet Attack
A Minnesota teenager was arrested Friday on charges of spreading the Blaster computer virus that infected more than 500,000 computers worldwide, the online Los Angeles Times reported.
A Minnesota teenager was arrested Friday on charges of spreading the Blaster computer virus that infected more than 500,000 computers worldwide, the online Los Angeles Times reported.
A court official has identified the teenager as Jeffrey Lee Parson, 18, of Hopkins, Minn., known online as "teekid."
FBI investigators seized seven computers at Parson's home on Aug.19, and he admitted altering the original Blaster virus into new forms.
Parson told investigators that computers infected with his variety of Blaster registered themselves with his Web site, where he could track them.
The FBI said in court documents that at least 7,000 computers were infected by Parson's software.
Parson is expected to make a court appearance following his arrest Friday.
Blaster was designed to launch an attack Aug. 16 from infected computers against the Microsoft Web site that contained a software patch to repair the flaw that Blaster used to spread itself. But Microsoft was able to avoid the attack and any major disruptions.