Israeli Teen Takes Down Iraqi Government Site - 1999
Whodunnit:
A 14-year-old Israeli boy named Nir Zigdon.
Story:
Zigdon wrote a program which, in the hands of an administrator of a certain Iraqi government site, could bring the site down. Zigdon then attached the program to an email, which he sent to an administrator the site. In the email he pretended to be a Palestinian fan of Saddam Hussein, and claimed that the file he had attached would only wipe out Israeli sites. This persuaded the admin to click on the file, thus wiping out the site.
Intent:
Zigdon had a fairly simple political agenda - the site he took down, he claimed, "contained lies about the United States, Britain and Israel, and many horrible statements against Jews."
Impact:
In addition to successfully taking down the site, Zigdon demonstrated how the anonymity of the Net enables anyone with the know-how to make a significant political statement.
Sources:
Denning