Cyber-Crook Turned Global Hero Avoids Prison in Malware Case

The British surfer who saved the world from a devastating cyberattack in 2017 was sentenced to time served after pleading guilty to building and selling malware to hackers in the years before his self-taught computer-security skills gained him fame worldwide.

Marcus Hutchins was sentenced Friday by U.S. District Judge Nancy Joseph in Milwaukee, Wisconsin. He pleaded guilty in April to two counts related to his marketing and distribution of malware called Kronos and UPAS, which his customers used to steal the bank details of unsuspecting victims around the world. Hutchins was arrested in July 2017 after he traveled to the U.S.