Lee Graham Walker, a Bleys Bolton resident and Axel Gembe, from Germany, have both been found guilty of conspiring and damaging a computer system, following Denial of service attacks on two US-based satellite TV sellers.
According to the BBC, the case is linked to another one which involved two other men who owned online satellite TV website - Orbit Communications- and who were charged with conspiracy to prevent genuine web users from accessing their rival satellite TV websites.
Miami-based Rapid Satellite and Los Angeles-based Weaknees were taken offline for a fortnight back in October 2003 and allegedly cost the shops hundreds of thousands of dollars.
As for Gembe, he developed two malicious programs, Agobot and Phatbot, which have been used in previous attacks.
Both men are said to be at large (although Heise-online says that they actually have appeared in a San Francisco federal court) and if convicted could face up to 15 years in prison.
The case of Walker reminds us of that of another British hacker, Mc Kinnon, whose trial and subsequent court decisions caused controversy.
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