Teen Indicted for Creating Sasser Worm

An 18-year-old student in Germany, known in court records only as Sven J., has been indicted by German prosecutors on suspicion of creating the Sasser computer worm that affected millions of computers and caused millions of dollars in damages.

Sven J. was arrested in May after investigators raided his parents' home in Rotenburg and seized evidence, including his personal computer. Police said he admitted during questioning that he wrote the Sasser program and he is believed to be the author of the Netsky worm that caused similar problems in February 2004.

Prosecutors said 143 victims filed charges in the case. Sven J. could face up to five years in prison if convicted. A trial date has not been set.

The Sasser worm struck on May 1, 2004 and affected thousands of companies in less than a week and an estimated 18 million computers worldwide. Some businesses were forced to shut down temporarily because of the worm.

After the Sasser worm attack, Microsoft offered a $250,000 reward for the conviction of the author of the worm. It was a tip from Microsoft that lead investigators to the home of Sven's parents.

See AFP report: German Teen Indicted Over Sasser Computer Worm