[IP] more on , plea agreement in botnet attack on a hospital

[David Farber <dave@farber.net>]

Begin forwarded message:

From: Lauren Weinstein <lauren@vortex.com>
Date: May 5, 2006 4:13:32 PM EDT
To: dave@farber.net
Cc: lauren@vortex.com
Subject: Re: [IP] plea agreement in botnet attack on a hospital


Dave,

It must be noted -- without diminishing the severity of the culprits'
actions -- that having critical hospital equipment such as intensive
care room equipment and operating room doors (!) tied to networks
that even have the *potential* to be infected by the outside world
is *extremely* poor practice.

The operating room doors actually wouldn't open normally?
Shades of "Westworld"...

--Lauren--
Lauren Weinstein
lauren@vortex.com or lauren@pfir.org
Tel: +1 (818) 225-2800
http://www.pfir.org/lauren
Co-Founder, PFIR
   - People For Internet Responsibility - http://www.pfir.org
Co-Founder, IOIC
   - International Open Internet Coalition - http://www.ioic.net
Moderator, PRIVACY Forum - http://www.vortex.com
Member, ACM Committee on Computers and Public Policy
Lauren's Blog: http://lauren.vortex.com
DayThink: http://daythink.vortex.com

 - - - -

> Begin forwarded message:
>
> From: Glenn Tenney CISSM CISM <gt_IP060107@think.org>
> Date: May 5, 2006 3:54:24 PM EDT
> To: Dave Farber <dave@farber.net>
> Subject: plea agreement in botnet attack on a hospital
>
> ( for IP if you wish )
>
> DoJ article about the original indictment from February 2006 is at
> http://www.usdoj.gov/criminal/cybercrime/maxwellIndict.htm
>
>
>
> http://www.mercurynews.com/mld/mercurynews/news/breaking_news/
> 14508386.htm
>
> Man pleads guilty in computer attack
>
> Associated Press
> Posted on Fri, May. 05, 2006
>
> SEATTLE - A man pleaded guilty to charges of launching an attack that
> hit tens of thousands of computers, including some that belonged to
> the Department of Defense, and crippled a hospital's network.
>
> Under a plea agreement, Christopher Maxwell, 20, of Vacaville, Calif.,
> will be held responsible for more than $252,000 in restitution to
> Northwest Hospital and Medical Center and the Department of
> Defense. He entered the plea in federal court Thursday.
>
> Maxwell and two juvenile co-conspirators were accused of using
> "botnet" attacks - programs that let hackers infect and control a
> computer network - to install unwanted Internet advertising software,
> a job that earned them about $100,000.
>
> Northwest Hospital and Medical Center was attacked in January
> 2005. Though backup systems prevented patient care from being
> compromised, prosecutors said operating room doors did not open,
> doctors' pagers did not work and computers in the intensive care unit
> shut down.
>
> Investigators later discovered the botnet had also damaged Department
> of Defense computer systems at the Headquarters 5th Signal Command in
> Mannheim, Germany, and at the Directorate of Information Management in
> Fort Carson, Colo.
>
> Maxwell faces up to 15 years in prison at sentencing set for Aug. 4
> but is expected to receive a much shorter sentence.
>
>
>
>
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