Wannacry hero arrested

A YOUNG cyber expert who stopped the Wannacry global cyber attack has been arrested in the US for allegedly conspiring to advertise and sell a malicious software that targeted bank accounts.

Marcus Hutchins, 23, who saved the NHS from cyber criminals, was at a hacking conference in Las Vegas when he was arrested by the FBI. The US Department of Justice revealed that he faces six counts of helping to create, spread and maintain the banking Trojan Kronos between 2014 and 2015. The Kronos malware was spread through emails with malicious attachments and allowed users to steal money using credentials such as internet banking passwords.

The allegations are unrelated to the Wannacry attack he halted after finding the worm’s “kill switch”.

The security expert, from Devon, is said to have been helping GCHQ’S National Cyber Security Centre.