Police in the Netherlands have arrested a second teenager in connection with the pro-WikiLeaks distributed denial-of-service (DDoS) attacks seen earlier this week.
The arrest of the 19-year-old man follows Friday's attacks on websites belonging to the Dutch Police and the national prosecutor's office. These attacks were widely viewed as retaliation against the arrest of a 16-year-old Dutch boy the day before. This boy was allegedly involved in "Anonymous" pro-WikiLeaks attacks against several websites, including MasterCard and PayPal.
Prosecutors claim that the 19-year-old, from Hoogezand-Sappemeer in the northeast of the Netherlands, flooded the prosecutor's website with internet traffic.
"From behind his computer, the man used hacker software to flood the website of the prosecutor’s office with as much digital traffic as possible. Investigations by the National Police Services Agency showed that the man, who was active under the internet nickname Awinee, urged other internet users to participate in the attack."
However, it is reported that the DDoS attack software used did not hide the IP address of the involved computer, making it easy for high-tech crime cops to trace the attack's origin.
That's a significant oversight if you plan to attack your country's national prosecutor's website.
Who is "Awinee"?
A quick Google search found a gaming website of a 19-year-old living in Hoogezand-Sappemeer using the online nickname "Awinee," with the real name of Martijn Gonlag.
Of course, that may be a coincidence. Wikipedia states that 34,000 people live in the Hoogezand-Sappemeer municipality, and perhaps many 19-year-olds there use that online nickname.
Denial-of-service attacks are illegal in many countries, including the Netherlands, where they can result in a maximum sentence of six years in jail.
Prosecutors also claim that the man participated in a DDoS attack against the website Moneybookers.com, taking the site offline for a period on Friday. Moneybookers.com terminated its relationship with WikiLeaks in August.
The ongoing WikiLeaks saga is generating strong emotions on both sides. Even if you strongly believe WikiLeaks is being persecuted or abandoned by online companies, think very carefully before volunteering your PC and engaging in a DDoS attack.
After all, the police might be knocking on your door next.
