Teen charged in Internet worm attack pleads innocent
A high school senior pleaded innocent Wednesday to a federal charge alleging he crippled more than 7,000 computers by modifying a version of the "Blaster" worm. Jeffrey Parson, 18, of Hopkins, Minn., was arrested Aug. 29 and faces one count of intentionally causing damage to a protected computer. The maximum sentence is 10 years in prison. Parson said little in court, other than to acknowledge his identity and tell the judge "Good afternoon." Trial was tentatively set for Nov. 17 in Seattle. Parson has been placed under home detention, but is allowed to attend school. Authorities said Parson admitted during an interview with federal agents that he modified the original "Blaster" infection last month and created a version known by a variety of names, including "Blaster.B." Parson has said the government overstated its case to try to make an example of him. Collectively, different versions of the virus-like worm, alternately called "LovSan" or "Blaster," snarled corporate networks worldwide, inundating more than 500,000 computers, according to Symantec Corp., a leading antivirus vendor. Experts consider it one of the worst outbreaks this year.
