http://news.zdnet.co.uk/security/0,1000000189,39290694,00.htm
US 'botmaster' faces 60-year prison spell
A Los Angeles man is facing up to 60 years in prison and
fines of up to $1.75m (£839,000) after admitting to
infecting at least 250,000 PCs with information-stealing
malware.
By day, 26-year-old John Kenneth Schiefer worked as a
security consultant for the company 3G Communications.
By night, he operated a 250,000 PC botnet, which US
federal prosecutors are claiming he used to steal
information and money from users of eBay's online
banking service, PayPal.
The malicious software developed by Schiefer accessed
the Windows system feature "Protected Store", which
encrypts and stores passwords for online accounts.
Investigators are yet to determine the full amount of
money stolen from victim's accounts.
Schiefer also distributed software on behalf of a Dutch
internet-advertising company, Simpel Internet. He
installed the software on 150,000 computers, netting him
$19,000 in commissions, but did so without users'
consent.
The botnet created by Schiefer is relatively small
compared to other notorious malware distributions. Some
estimates of the size of a botnet associated with the
Storm worm suggest it incorporates up to 20 million PCs.
Schiefer is pleading guilty to four charges of fraud and
wiretapping and is expected to be arraigned on 3
December.
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