Jeffrey Lee Parson, now 19, has been sentenced to 18 months in prison for creating a variant of an Internet worm that damaged almost 50,000 computers in 2003. Parson will also perform 10 months of community service as part of his sentence.

Parson was facing more than three years in prison but U.S. District Court Judge Marsha Pechman reduced his sentence in part because his parents were neglectful of his needs which caused the psychological problems that led to his criminal actions. His age and his history of mental illness also contributed to his reduced sentence.

Pechman indicated that the Internet 'has created a dark hole, a dungeon if you will, for people who have mental illnesses or people who are lonely. I didn't see any parent standing there saying, `It's not a healthy thing to lock yourself in a room and create your own reality.''

Parson will also have to pay restitution to Microsoft and to the people whose computers were damaged by his creation. The Blaster worm was placed on the software giant's update website and downloaded from there. The exact amount of restitution will be determined next month at a hearing.

The defendant seemed contrite at his sentencing hearing, apologizing to the judge and to his victims. 'I know I've made a huge mistake and I hurt a lot of people and I feel terrible,' Parson said.

Parson, who is from Hopkins, Minnesota, will serve his sentence at a low security prison. Upon his return, he will be banned from using chat rooms of playing games on the Internet and will be restricted to using it for business or educational purposes.