Botnets
Botnet is a jargon term for a collection of software robots, or "bots", that run autonomously and automatically, often for malicious purposes. Hackers have for some time utilized Botnets for various purposes, but Ancheta set himself above the crowd by actively advertising his network of bots on Internet chat channels.
A Web site Ancheta ran included a range of prices he charged people who wanted to rent out the machines, along with guidelines on how many bots were required to bring down a particular type of Web site.
| “ | He hijacked somewhere in the area of half a million computer systems. This not only affected computers like the one in your home, but it allowed him and others to orchestrate large-scale attacks. | ” |
| — US attorney's office in Los Angeles, Thom Mrozek |
Read more about this topic: Jeanson James Ancheta