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8 June 2001

Love Bug case reopened in Philippines

Onel de Guzman is suspected of being the author of the Love Bug worm
Onel de Guzman is suspected of being the author of the Love Bug worm

According to reports from the Philippines the case against Onel de Guzman, alleged author of the VBS/LoveLet-A (also known as ILOVEYOU or the Love Bug) worm, has been reopened.

Elfren Meneses, chief of the Anti-Fraud and Computer Crimes Division of the Philippines National Bureau of Investigation (NBI), said the case has been reopened after the NBI filed a motion for reconsideration at the Prosecutor's Office of the Department of Justice in Manila.

Prosecutor Archimedes Manabat is said to have set aside the dismissal order initially issued by DOJ, opening up the case for investigation.

In August 2000 the Prosecutor's Office had ruled that de Guzman could not be charged with violating the Access Device Regulation Act (RA 8484).

The Philippines introduced stricter computer crime laws (the E-Commerce Act) after the Love Bug infected systems around the world, but because they were not in effect at the time of the alleged offence they could not be used when prosecuting de Guzman.