Panda virus programmers up on internet gambling charges

Two Chinese hackers, previously imprisoned for creating the notorious Panda computer virus, appeared in a Chinese court again this week, charged with running online gambling games.

The publication China.org reports that a court in Lishui City, east China’s Zhejiang Province, heard a police case against 26 people including Zhang Shun and Li Jun, creators of the “joss-stick burning panda” virus that damaged millions of computers across the globe in 2006 and 2007 .

Prosecutors said the defendants, all from an online game company, operated several card games that allowed players to gamble online using virtual chips.

More than 2,200 people signed up and a total of 76 million yuan (US$12.4 million) was staked. The company raked in 8 million yuan by selling the chips.

In 2010 Li made a cash donation to a research base for giant pandas as an act of remorse for making the virus, which he named after the endangered bears.

The virus changed icons on desktops into cartoon pandas holding three burning joss-sticks and wreaked havoc by deleting files, damaging programs and stealing gaming and messanger accounts.

The outcome of the court hearing on the online gambling charges is not yet available.