British hacker arrested for launching DDoS attacks on Google, Skype and selling malware

A 21-year-old British man was arrested by UK authorities for allegedly launching DDoS attacks against Google, Skype and Pokemon, as well as selling malware online. Alex Bessel from Liverpool was reportedly arraigned in a Birmingham court on Monday (30 October).

The alleged hacker was reportedly arrested in September and has been accused of using a 9,000-strong botnet army to launch attacks against the tech giants. Since the creation of the infamous Mirai botnet, cybercriminals have extensively used botnets, comprising of vulnerable internet-connected devices, to launch large-scale attacks against prominent targets.

It is still unclear as to when Bessel allegedly launched the DDoS attacks against Google, Skype and Pokemon. It also remains uncertain as to how much damage these attacks caused the affected companies.

Bessel also reportedly ran his own website – AioBuy – that allowed people to sell various products. According to British authorities, the alleged hacker created a malware as well, which was used by other cybercriminals to disguise their code and evade detection, Bleeping Computer reported. However, British authorities are yet to disclose the name of the crypter Bessel created.

Bessel reportedly made over $700,000 (£527,200) from running AioBuy, which was a platform popularly used by other cybercriminals to buy and sell tools. The alleged hacker has also been accused of stealing passwords of over 750 users.

The Liverpool native has also been charged with the possession of cocaine, which authorities discovered while making the arrest in September. Bessel is currently facing a total of 11 different charges for various crimes.