New Anonymous Suspect Arrested in UK

The UK Metropolitan Police Service has arrested and charged a new suspect as part of its investigation into the distributed denial-of-service attacks launched by Anonymous.

Peter David Gibson, 22, a student from Hartlepool, Cleveland, was charged with "conspiracy to do an unauthorised act in relation to a computer, with intent to impair the operation of any computer or prevent or hinder access to any programme or data held in a computer or to impair the operation of any such programme or the reliability of such data."

Gibson was arrested in connection to the investigation into Anonymous DDoS attacks against PayPal, Visa, MasterCard and other companies earlier this year.

He does not appear to have had any links to the more serious hacking attacks perpetrated by the Anonymous branch known as LulzSec and he probably only installed the Low Ion Orbit Canon (LOIC) tool on his computer.

Several people were arrested in UK so far in connection with DDoS attacks organized by Anonymous. In January the Metropolitan Police detained five suspects aged 15 to 26.

The hacktivist group considers distributed denial-of-service attacks the digital equivalent of real world sit-ins and other peaceful protests. But the reality is that DDoS is a crime punishable with imprisonment in most cases.

There have been cases in US when Anonymous DDoS participants have been sent to prison, but not yet in UK. Gibson is due to appear on bail at City of Westminster Magistrates' Court on 7 September.

Last month, the Metro Police arrested 18-year-old Jake Davis who is believed to be the LulzSec and Anonymous spokesperson known as Topiary. The charges brought against him are much more serious and could result in a lengthy prison sentence.

Earlier this month the Metropolitan Police has warned people, particularly teenagers, against taking up hacktivism, despite the appeal that such rebellious actions might have.