WutWuzDat
09-14-06, 07:34 PM
The authors of the now infamous Zotob worm have been jailed in Morocco,
more than a year after they were apprehended in August 2005. The worm
gained global prominence after it affected several news agencies and
high-profile media outlets such as CNN and The New York Times. Two men
believed to be the authors of Zotob, Farid Essebar and Achraf Bahloul,
were detained in Morocco just weeks after the release of the worm into
the wild. Essebar, who used the nickname "Diabl0", which was
found in the worm code, was also believed to be responsible for the
release of many other pieces of malware.
According to a press release by the FBI, the Moroccan court convicted
the 19-year old Essebar and 20-year old Bahloul on charges of conspiracy
and illegal access to computer systems among others. Essebar received a
sentence of two years, while Bahloul will spend a year in jail. A third
man, named by the FBI as Atilla Ekici, was also arrested in Turkey at
the same time last year, and is facing charges of financing the Zotob
attack. All three are also believed to have been involved in a wider
cybercriminal ring that stole credit cards and committed online fraud.
It is thought that both men jailed in Morocco are lodging appeals
against their convictions.
The FBI has praised the Moroccan authorities for their role in bringing
both Essebar and Bahloul to justice. Other parties involved in the
investigation were the Turkish National Police and Microsoft,
highlighting the global nature of modern cybercrime.
more than a year after they were apprehended in August 2005. The worm
gained global prominence after it affected several news agencies and
high-profile media outlets such as CNN and The New York Times. Two men
believed to be the authors of Zotob, Farid Essebar and Achraf Bahloul,
were detained in Morocco just weeks after the release of the worm into
the wild. Essebar, who used the nickname "Diabl0", which was
found in the worm code, was also believed to be responsible for the
release of many other pieces of malware.
According to a press release by the FBI, the Moroccan court convicted
the 19-year old Essebar and 20-year old Bahloul on charges of conspiracy
and illegal access to computer systems among others. Essebar received a
sentence of two years, while Bahloul will spend a year in jail. A third
man, named by the FBI as Atilla Ekici, was also arrested in Turkey at
the same time last year, and is facing charges of financing the Zotob
attack. All three are also believed to have been involved in a wider
cybercriminal ring that stole credit cards and committed online fraud.
It is thought that both men jailed in Morocco are lodging appeals
against their convictions.
The FBI has praised the Moroccan authorities for their role in bringing
both Essebar and Bahloul to justice. Other parties involved in the
investigation were the Turkish National Police and Microsoft,
highlighting the global nature of modern cybercrime.