A Seattle-based teenager alleged to have made the Blaster internet worm even more deadly is expected to be arrested later today by the FBI. While investigators do not suspect the 18 year-old to be the creator of the original Blaster worm they suspect he altered it into the so-called B-variant, which does more harm than the original.
A self-replicating internet worm, the malicious virus bored into computers as a result of a weakness in the Microsoft Windows operating system. It took over poorly defended computers and harnessed them to launch a concerted attack on a Microsoft technical service website. It is estimated that one in five companies in the US had some of their computers infected in the past month.
While the creator of the original Blaster worm has not yet been found, the 18 year-old has been questioned and put under surveillance by police in Seattle.
A press conference is due to be held later today by FBI in Seattle to discuss their progress in the investigation.
By John Kennedy
