Computer hackers are trying to blackmail internet bookmakers by threatening to disrupt online betting ahead of the Grand National, the National Hi-Tech Crime Unit (NHTCU) said today.
It emerged that the unit is investigating an alleged plot by hackers - believed to be criminal gangs in Eastern Europe - threatening to paralyse bookmakers' websites before the race unless their financial demands are met.
The NHTCU believes the gangs plan to mount a co-ordinated electronic attack, flooding the targeted website with requests for information and making it inaccessible for anyone to place a bet.
If successfully carried out, the attacks could cost bookmakers hundreds of thousands of pounds in lost business.
Threats have been made via email, demanding around £20,000 to £30,000, the equivalent of around an hour's business for many internet bookmakers.
The gangs are also understood to be threatening to disrupt online betting ahead of other major sporting events, including the Euro 2004 football tournament. "We are aware of it and we are investigating," a spokeswoman for the NHTCU said today. "We know that specific sporting events are being targeted. This could well include the Grand National and Euro 2004."
The NHTCU began investigating the threats when attacks on UK sites were reported last autumn, but the spokeswoman said that it had known of attacks as far back as two years ago.
The hackers use what is known as a distributed denial of service attack, where target websites are deluged with requests for information, paralysing them for 24 hours.
Attacks can slow sites down to such an extent that users are effectively unable to place bets.
It is understood that hackers threatened offshore websites used by US gamblers before last month's Super Bowl.
The tactic has spread to the UK as the online betting industry has grown, with more and more websites having started up over the last two years.
The NHTCU was established in 2000 by the former home secretary, Jack Straw, as part of a national high-tech crime strategy aimed at reducing significant gaps identified in the police's ability to fight this type of crime.
