US jails hacker who sold access to hijacked PCs Published duration 7 September 2012

image caption Hijacked PCs formed into botnets are responsible for sending out most junk mail or spam

A US hacker who sold access to thousands of hijacked home computers has been jailed for 30 months.

Joshua Schichtel of Phoenix, Arizona, was sentenced for renting out more than 72,000 PCs that he had taken over using computer viruses.

Millions of PCs are enrolled in these networks, known as botnets, and many help to send out junk mail messages.

Schichtel's customers installed their own malicious software on the PCs to aid their own cybercrime efforts.

As well as going to prison for 30 months, Schichtel was also sentenced to a three-year supervised release programme that he will serve after leaving jail. The supervision will tightly control his access to computers and the net.

Remotely attempting to cause damage to computers without authorisation breaks the US Computer Fraud and Abuse Act.

Schichtel received $1,500 (£939) for handing over control to an unnamed customer.