zombie computer
n. A computer containing a hidden software program that enables the machine to be controlled remotely, usually to perform an attack on another computer.
Examples
2000
The new version of a software package dubbed 'Trinoo' allows attackers to infiltrate ordinary desktop computers running Microsoft's Windows operating system. These computers — particularly those connected to high-speed Internet services — could then be used in assaults on other Web sites, security analysts say. . . .These tools allow an attacker to place agents on "zombie" computers around the world and then wake them up simultaneously to launch a crippling stream of Web traffic at a target site.
—“New software simplifies denial-of-service attacks,” St. Petersburg Times, February 24, 2000
1999 (earliest)
A new form of Denial of Service (DoS) attack caused by the trin00 and Tribe Network Flood programs has been wreaking havoc on bandwidth on a larger scale than ever before, according to Chris Klous, founder and chief technology officer of Internet Security Systems (ISS).

This DoS attack employs a simple concept: sending bogus packets from a remote location to IP routers where they collect and eventually plug up a pipe. The danger is manifested in this version because the hackers are gaining control of as many as thousands of vulnerable zombie computers in order to magnify and direct their full-scale assault against a single victim from all directions.
—Brian Fonseca, “Denial-of-service attacks employ zombie PCs to hit networks,” InfoWorld Daily News, December 09, 1999
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