DIGITAL EXTRACTION

If we're going to start relying on that fickle disaster-in-the-making called the Internet to support our communications and our livelihoods, we had better get a little tougher with those responsible for its instability: the creators of worms and viruses. It has cost businesses approximately $100 billion to clean up after the Bagle, Netsky and MyDoom attacks alone, according to research firm mi2g. Add the $11.5 billion to recover from Mimail and the $8.8 billion from Love Bug, and we're talking serious dollars. Of course, that's serious to affected businesses, which average $100,000 each in cleanup costs — but evidently not for the courts that will only send perpetrators to prison for a maximum of five years. But maybe that's our fault after all. A severe case of Kobe-itis seems to kick in when it comes to victims seeing their cases through in court. If the estimates of damage caused by worms and viruses are accurate, why are there only 143 plaintiffs claiming a paltry $157,000 in damages going after Sven Jaschan, creator of the Sasser worm who was charged last week with computer sabotage? There should be an easy, automatic filing procedure for victims of Internet attacks that raises the stakes of claims and puts a little bite in the charges. Failing that, since 90% of organizations suffer damages despite having deployed anti-virus software, according to Meta Group, perhaps businesses should do what our potential next U.S. vice president would do: sue everyone involved — the maker of the operating system, the security software, the school where the hacker leaned his or her craft and, naturally, the parents who raised such a beast. Last resort? Cut off their fingers.