Blaster writer faces jail

Parson, a 19-year-old from Minnesota, is due to be sentenced this week for writing the Blaster.B variant, which prosecutors claim infected around 48,000 machines that hadn't had a Microsoft patch installed to protect against the Windows XP and 2000 flaw, and caused damage totalling $1.2m.

The variant also tried to use its infected zombies commit a denial-of-service attack on the Microsoft Windows Update site.

Now, Microsoft stands to be the main beneficiary if the teen malware writer has to pay the requested restitution. The Redmond behemoth would receive the lion's share, with the rest of the money being distributed to some of the victims of the worm.

Prosecutors are gunning for Lee Parson to spend time in prison for writing the Blaster variant and are calling for a 37-month custodial sentence.

Parson's lawyers, however, are asking for a six-month prison term, according to reports, with another six months in a community treatment centre and another six of home detention, to be followed by three years of probation.