Trojan-horse developers confess
An Israeli couple, Ruth and Michael Haefrati, confessed in Tel Aviv District Court Tuesday to developing the Trojan-horse spyware program.
Under the terms of their plea bargain, the couple's lawyers and the prosecution jointly recommended that Ruth serve four years in jail, Michael serve two years, that the couple receive an additional, suspended sentence and pay a $212,000 fine, according to a report in the Israeli daily Ha'aretz.
According to the indictment against the couple, Michael developed the spyware program, which Ruth later marketed to private investigators, the newspaper said.
Several major corporations found the Trojan-horse program in their computer systems last summer. According to a report in the Israeli business newspaper Globes, 38 companies and private individuals were victims of the spyware uploads.
The indictment said the couple had been using the program to commit crimes since 2004. Ruth was indicted for fraud, invasion of computer data, planting computer viruses, invasion of privacy and conspiring to commit a crime, the Ha'aretz said, while Michael faced charges of aiding in these offenses.
The judge in the trial will rule on the recommended sentence March 27, Globes reported.
Copyright 2006 by United Press International