Expert who found Wannacry kill switch arrested in different malware probe

Marcus Hutchins, the British computer expert who helped shut down the world-wide Wannacry cyber attack, has been charged with creating banking malware.

Expert who found Wannacry kill switch arrested in different malware probe

Marcus Hutchins, the British computer expert who helped shut down the world-wide Wannacry cyber attack, has been charged with creating banking malware.

The Wannacry virus brought down computer systems around the globe including HSE computers here. It affected 300,000 computers in 150 countries.

The 23-year-old from Ilfracombe, Devon in England, was arrested in Las Vegas and charged with six counts in relation to creating and distributing software that harvested banking details known as Kronos banking Trojan, the US Department of Justice said on Thursday. Kronos is understood to be unconnected with Wannacry.

Hutchins was hailed a hero in May when he found a "kill-switch" that slowed the effects of the virus that swept through computer systems around the world.

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