Via Metafilter: would-be blackmailers are extorting money from websites by threatening to bring it down if owners don't pay up. They're going after the online casinos, who do business mostly offshore and do not benefit from the protection of the US Federal Government.

In some cases, the attacks, which can cripple a corporate network with a barrage of bogus data requests, are followed by a demand for money. An effective attack can knock a Web site offline for extended periods.