FBI Arrests Suspect Who Tried to Take Down 70% of the Internet

The FBI has arrested a suspect who, according to prosecutors, planned to “take down” 70% of the internet by launching a massive attack on an Amazon Web Services (AWS) data center. The arrested individual is 28-year-old Seth Pendley from Texas.

Authorities report that Pendley attempted to blow up an AWS data center located in Ashburn, Virginia. To carry out his plan, he allegedly acquired a type of explosive known as C-4.

Pendley believed that this operation would completely disable 70% of the internet. However, the would-be saboteur was not very discreet, as he posted about his intentions on the MyMilitia forum back in January. Since then, law enforcement had been monitoring the account under the nickname “Dionysus.”

By late January, Pendley was actively using the Signal messenger app to communicate with a supposed supplier of explosives, who turned out to be an FBI informant. In February, he even shared a hand-drawn map of the AWS data center.

Pendley’s motivation was a so-called “holy war” against oligarchs, as he believed the targeted data center hosted services for the FBI, CIA, and other agencies that, in his view, protect oligarchs and create favorable conditions for them.

During a meeting, the “seller” of the explosives showed Pendley how to handle C-4 and how to detonate it. As soon as Pendley loaded the explosives into his car, the FBI immediately arrested him.