A Moroccan court on Tuesday jailed two men for one and two years for unleashing computer worms that disrupted networks across the United States, court officials and lawyers said.
The court in Sale, twin city to the Moroccan capital Rabat, convicted
19-year old science student Farid Essebar and his friend Achraf Bahloul, 22, for their role in creating and spreading the Zotob worm last year.Moroccan authorities said the two men had one accomplice in Turkey who was named earlier by the FBI as Atilla Ekici.
Zotob caused computer outages at more than 100 U.S. companies, including major media outlets like CNN and the New York Times. But it did not create widespread havoc like software programs such as SQL Slammer and MyDoom.
"The court convicted the two men for conspiracy, theft, using forged credit cards and illegal access to computer systems," a court official said.
It sentenced Essebar and Bahloul to two years and one year in prison respectively. The two men' lawyers said they planned to lodge appeals soon.
The FBI said close teamwork with Microsoft Corp. and authorities in Morocco and Turkey helped net Essebar and Ekici 12 days after the attack.
Copyright 2006 Reuters Limited.
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