[Infowarrior] - FBI arrests WannaCry hero Marcus Hutchins in Las Vegas

[Richard Forno]

FBI arrests WannaCry hero Marcus Hutchins in Las Vegas

http://www.telegraph.co.uk/technology/2017/08/03/fbi-arrests-wannacry-hero-marcus-hutchins-las-vegas-reports/

3 August 2017 • 5:51pm

The FBI has arrested Marcus Hutchins, the 23-year-old security expert who saved the NHS from cyber criminals earlier this year. 

Hutchins was at a hacking conference in Las Vegas when he was arrested as part of an FBI investigation. 

UK law enforcement and security agencies confirmed a British citizen has been arrested.

The young cyber expert was hailed as a saviour back in May for finding a kill switch for the WannaCry ransomware, which spread to more than 300,000 computers across 150 countries. Among the victims were dozens of NHS Trusts, which were forced to delay operations and turn people away. 

Hutchins, who stopped the attack from his bedroom in his parents' house under the pseudonym MalwareTech, has been working with GCHQ's National Cyber Security Centre since the incident. The Centre said it was aware of the situation and that it was "inappropriate" to comment further on law enforcement matters. 

Janet, his mother, told the Telegraph she was trying to find out exactly what had happened to her son but said she had not yet managed to get anything confirmed.  

"I think I'm going to be rather busy tonight," she added.

It is not clear why Hutchins has been arrested or if he will face charges in the US. The US Marshals office confirmed it was the FBI who arrested Hutchins.

"My colleague in Las Vegas said this was an FBI arrest. Mr Hutchins is not in US Marshals custody," a spokesman for the office told Motherboard. 

I can confirm @MalwareTechBlog was detained yesterday and FBI/US Marshalls won't tell me where he is. https://t.co/lV5SxZjsRi
— Andrew Mabbitt (@MabbsSec) August 3, 2017

After his arrest Hutchins was taken to Henderson Detention Center in Nevada before being moved to another facility, according to Motherboard. 

A security expert who was at the DefCon hacking conference with Hutchins told the Telegraph: "I finally located him but they moved him 10 minutes before visiting hours and now he's in the wind again." 

They said they spent most of the conference with Hutchins and were sharing accommodation with until he disappeared for around 20 hours. Hutchins' parents confirmed to the expert that he had been arrested.  

The UK's National Crime Agency said: "We are aware a UK national has been arrested but it's a matter for the authorities in the US," it said.

WannaCry ransomware map - locations of infection