Information Security News: Dutch blogsites fight cyberwar against spammer

[InfoSec News <isn () c4i org>]

http://www.theregister.co.uk/content/55/34146.html

By Jan Libbenga
Posted: 24/11/2003 

Dutch blogsites Retecool.com, Volkomenkut.com and Bastard-inc.com got
a taste of their own medicine last Friday after they declared cyberwar
on US spam firm Customerblast.com.

The weblogs, known for their satirical pranks, had written a script of
war to push Customerblast off the web with sustained distributed
denial of service (DDOS) attacks. This was in response to a mail bomb
sent by the spam firm to Retecool. For those unfamiliar with Retecool
that has the same effect as pinching the behind of a club bouncer.

The scripts of war worked well. The spammer’s site sunk like a stone.  
But Customerblast (the name suggests that we’re in Schwarzenegger
territory here) fought back. On Friday, all three weblogs were
inundated with mail bombs, floods and DDOS attacks, forcing them to go
offline temporarily. Even Retecool's hosting provider Tune-In Internet
had to bear the storm, which lasted for six hours.

Late Friday afternoon, the weblogs began a second attack. 'Don't mess
with the Dutch', was the message they wanted to communicate. On Monday
(November 24th), the spammer had still not recuperated from the
attacks.

Customerblast is a company run by Steve Sorenson, aka John Hites, aka
Sarah Johnson, aka Laurence King, aka Sorenson And Ass, aka
Advertising International, aka Internet Ads aka Sales Pro ltd. The
company offers spam services and bulletproof hosting for almost
nothing (don't they all?). AT&T, HopOne, ThePlanet.com, CUBEXS, Cable
& Wireless and Genuity/Verizon are among the companies that booted the
spammer after thousands of complaints.

Apparently, not all ISPs in the Netherlands could appreciate the
attack against Customerblast. One cyberwar participant, named Bumble,
says he was cut off by his provider and now faces ‘legal action’.

It shows that getting back at spammers may not always be a good idea.  
Just last week a Silicon Valley programmer was arrested for
threatening to torture and kill employees of a company he blames for
bombarding him with advertisements promising to enlarge his penis.

He should have waited: The US House of Representatives last Friday
voted to outlaw most spam, while a much tougher Californian law goes
into effect on January 1.



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