British security researcher Marcus Hutchins has been sentenced to supervised release by US District Judge J.P. Stadtmueller. Hutchins was arrested by the FBI in 2017, only months after being hailed a hero for his role in ending the global WannaCry ransomware attack by triggering the malware’s kill switch.
In April of this year, Hutchins pleaded guilty to entering a conspiracy to create and distribute malware, and to aiding and abetting the distribution of malware. Judge Stadtmueller now determined that Hutchins’ past offenses did not justify additional jail time given his positive contributions to cybersecurity as a researcher. The judge added that “it’s going to take the people like you with your skills to come up with solutions.”
Read more: WannaCry Hero Marcus Hutchins Avoids Jail Time In Malware Distribution Case
