Student charged with PayPal hacks

A student who was a member of Anonymous has appeared in court and charged with a series of attacks on PayPal.

Christopher Weatherhead, 22, who used the name Nerdo, was described as a leading player in distributed denial-of-service (DDoS) attacks, according to the Guardian. He was convicted on one count of conspiracy to impair the operation of computers, contrary to the Criminal Law Act 1977.

The charges allege that Weatherhead was one of a number of hacktivists who spent ten days targeting Paypal, causing losses of £3.5m (A$5.4 million) as part of Anonymous' ‘Operation Payback'.

Judge Peter Testar at Southwark Crown Court, warned him he could face jail when sentenced at a later date with his three co-accused, who pleaded guilty at an earlier hearing. Weatherhead was freed on bail until sentencing in January on a date yet to be set.

Weatherhead has been banned from using internet chat relays or posting online under the pseudonym Nerdo or any other name but his own.

This article originally appeared at scmagazineuk.com