http://feeds.bignewsnetwork.com/redir.php?jid=a5ba3ca516dc122a&cat=c08dd24cec417021Experts fret over online extortion attempts
'Bot' armies capable of toppling big sites, some sayBy Bob Sullivan
Technology correspondent
MSNBC
Updated: 8:34 p.m. ET Nov. 10, 2004It's the 21st century's equivalent of a ransom note: Pay up or suffer a massive denial of service attack on your Web site powered by thousands of hijacked "zombie" computers.
"You have 2 choices," Card Services International was told via e-mail earlier this year. "You can ignore this email and try to keep your site up, which will cost you tens of thousands of dollars ... or you can send us $10K by Western Union to make sure your site experiences no problem. If you choose not to pay for our help, then you will probably not be in business much longer, as you will be under attack each weekend for the next 20 weeks."
more...
WHOAH!!!