Man could face 25 years in prison for selling botnets to spa

[pwel]

A computer hacker responsible for creating armies of computers to launch Internet-based attacks and selling those "botnets" to spammers and other miscreants pleaded guilty Monday to federal criminal charges in Los Angeles, according to a prosecutor with the U.S. Attorney's Office.

Jeanson James Ancheta pleaded guilty in a U.S. District Court in Los Angeles to four felony charges and could face from five to 25 years in prison, said James Aquilina, assistant U.S. attorney with the cyber and intellectual property crimes section of the U.S. Attorney's Office.

The case is the first time in the U.S. that a hacker has been convicted not only for creating and spreading malicious code but also for making money from it, Aquilina said.

A sentencing hearing for Ancheta has been scheduled for May 1 in the U.S. District Court of California, Central Division. Judge R. Gary Klausner is presiding over the case and must approve the plea agreement.

Last November the U.S. Federal Bureau of Investigation arrested 20-year-old Ancheta, whom they believe to be part of a "botmaster underground" that seizes control of computers to and sells those computer armies to people who want to commit cybercrimes.

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