Slashdot Mirror


DDOS Mafia On The Loose

TivoLee writes "If you were worried that courts have been cracking down too much on Internet miscreants lately, think again. Sure, virus writers and spammers have been hit with some tough sentences in recent months. But what about this: the U.S. govt. has dropped charges against a group of four guys known as the DDOS Mafia. Two of the men admitted to releasing viruses so they could create botnets to launch DDOS attacks for hire. Their boss is accused of causing $2Mil in damage to victim sites. Yet prosecutors are dropping charges, so they can get the criminals to snitch on other criminals. Oi vey."

13 of 147 comments (clear)

  1. Wow by kamapuaa · · Score: 5, Insightful

    Why is this bad? It's worked well against organized crime, why not try it against organized cyber-crime?

    --
    Slashdot: providing anti-social weirdos a soapbox, since 1997.
    1. Re:Wow by LiquidCoooled · · Score: 5, Funny

      When you wake up with a trojan horse head lying in your startup folder you KNOW its time to leave time.

      --
      liqbase :: faster than paper
  2. Hint : by FiReaNGeL · · Score: 4, Insightful

    Here's a hint. They do the same thing for murderers, drug trafficants, gang members. Prosecuting them will take 4 places in jail. Getting them to cooperate will help stop others, and they probably have to engage themselve not to continue doing viruses / ddos. Everyone wins. Honestly, if they do it with murderers, is it THAT surprising that they do the same thing with script kiddies?

  3. Clarification by yelohbird · · Score: 5, Informative
    "Charges could still be brought. This just allows us to talk to defense attorneys and negotiate things before having to bring an indictment against a particular individual," said Alikhan.
    Title is misleading. This kind of thing happens quite often to negotiate with said criminals to see if they can use them as bait to hook on bigger fish.
    --
    h-t-t-p-colon-slash-slash-slash-dot-dot-org
  4. Um, huh? by Txiasaeia · · Score: 4, Insightful
    They're not really dropping charges, they're just buying time (and gathering evidence, I'd wage) before charging them with a crime. From the article: "Charges could still be brought. This just allows us to talk to defense attorneys and negotiate things before having to bring an indictment against a particular individual."

    In other words, normal lawyer tactics. Nothing to see here.

    --
    Condemnant quod non intellegunt.
  5. The criminals' first accomplice is none other than by JonLatane · · Score: 5, Funny
    Rob "CmdrTaco" Malda, who, via his massively popular website Slashdot, has been crushing other, weaker websites for years. Prosecutors have a great deal of evidence, but are still looking for motives.

    Rewards are expected to be offered to anyone with information leading to the arrest and/or conviction of Mr. Malda. :)

  6. Operating system of choice... by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 5, Funny

    SopranOS

  7. Not only that by Sycraft-fu · · Score: 4, Interesting

    Part of agreements like that are "and you keep your nose clean in the future." These guys will have an eye kept on them, and if they go back to their old habits not only can they be charged with the new crimes, but with the ones they made a deal on as well.

    I have no problem at all with this, provided it is used to catch more important criminals. I mean really, I'm not that interested in the script kiddies that write the software and create the botnets. I want them stopped, of course, but I'm more interested in the people behind the operation that pay them and benefit from it. Bust the kiddies, the backers will find new ones, bust the backers, it's a done deal.

  8. Oi vey? (OT) by JessLeah · · Score: 5, Funny

    SlashDot: Jews for nerds. Stuff that's farklempt. *dodges tomatoes*

  9. Re:The criminals' first accomplice is none other t by Jugalator · · Score: 4, Funny

    Rob "CmdrTaco" Malda, who, via his massively popular website Slashdot, has been crushing other, weaker websites for years. Prosecutors have a great deal of evidence, but are still looking for motives.

    Speaking of this, has anyone yet solved the Slashdot Paradox?
    Few read the articles, yet the web servers get annihilated!

    --
    Beware: In C++, your friends can see your privates!
  10. Re:"Oi yey" by zakezuke · · Score: 4, Informative

    What does "oi yey" mean? Google's doesn't know.

    "Oy vey" (sometimes oy vay / oy way) is a Yiddish phrase and means roughly dear me or woe is me. Vey might actually have been adopted from the German "weh" which I believe is pain. Oy i'm not sure about. It should be an old Hebrew translated in the Christian bible as woe but who's to say. Where as "vay iz mir" (oy vay iz mir) is also a Yiddish expression for woe is me. Oy gevalt is a cry pain/suffering.

    It's my belief that "oi yey" is some schlemiel's attempt to write oy vey resulting in ferklempt.

    Shalom!

    --
    There is no sanctuary. There is no sanctuary. SHUT UP! There is no shut up. There is no shut up.
  11. Protect Internet Anarchy by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 4, Interesting

    In former times, the Internet used to be the place where our clowns would laugh in happy anarchy.
    Corporations and Business from "real life" have since taken over the networks.
    We - rightly - want the filth (organized criminality, theft, fraud, ...) those have brought with them banished from our networks.
    But the ultimate outcome will be a governed Internet. Already, DRM is around the corner and internet communications are being tapped.

    Protect Internet Anarchy! Suffer the occasional virii and spam mails - for the sake of a free Internet!

  12. Re:Who are the backers? by Sycraft-fu · · Score: 4, Interesting

    I'm not suggesting, it's the truth. Go do a bit of research on it. There are two big purchasers of botnets:

    1) Spammers. They are generally more interested in the zombie'd machine version to use it to send SPAM,.

    2) Extortionists. They threaten sites with DDoS's if protection money isn't paid. If that sounds like a normal mob scam, well it is and that's often who's behind it, one of the OC syndicates out there.

    There are certianly script kiddies that do it just for their own benefit, but those are generally the IRC variety. They attempt to take over channels and the like. Big attacks on major sites predicated by demands for money are generally backed by criminals with a little more experience in this kind of thing.