Researcher Who Stopped WannaCry Ransomware Detained in US After Def Con - Page 1
Forum section: electronics / general

author: gnavigator1007
author_rank: Unknown
timestamp: August 03, 2017, 05:20:35 pm
content: https://motherboard.vice.com/en_us/article/ywp8k5/researcher-who-stopped-wannacry-ransomware-detained-in-us-after-def-conThis is starting to really blow up on Twitter. Already seeing people say conference organisers should call off future US events.

author: ebastler
author_rank: Super Contributor
timestamp: August 03, 2017, 07:08:11 pm
content: Quotehttps://www.theguardian.com/technology/2017/aug/03/researcher-who-stopped-wannacry-ransomware-detained-in-us

author: gnavigator1007
author_rank: Unknown
timestamp: August 03, 2017, 07:16:59 pm
content: The indictment:https://www.documentcloud.org/documents/3912520-Marcus-Hutchinson-Indictment.htmlThere's quite a bit that doesn't make sense here

author: G7PSK
author_rank: Super Contributor
timestamp: August 03, 2017, 08:54:31 pm
content: NSA or CIA pissed off that their ransom ware got stopped perhaps.

author: bd139
author_rank: Super Contributor
timestamp: August 03, 2017, 09:08:19 pm
content: Possible. I reckon he was up to something hooky already and they just waited for him to waltz into US jurisdiction. He was working with NCSC at GCHQ just before this so they probably told the US this. I've dealt with guys on that side of the security fence and they are dodgy. You should never even talk to them!

author: ebastler
author_rank: Super Contributor
timestamp: August 03, 2017, 09:13:25 pm
content: Quote from: gnavigator1007 on August 03, 2017, 07:16:59 pmHmm - what does not make sense, in your view?It's just the indictment, not the whole evidence they (hopefully) have. And, of course, it is not the verdict either. We will have to wait and see, I assume.

author: gnavigator1007
author_rank: Unknown
timestamp: August 03, 2017, 09:52:48 pm
content: Quote from: ebastler on August 03, 2017, 09:13:25 pmIt's extremely unlikely that he "created" Kronos. He publicly requested samples after it was already known. They go on to further claim that he and the unknown defendant "updated" Kronos. This does seem possible, but only within his capacity as a researcher. All other accusations of advertising and selling under the "Overt Acts in Furtherance of the Conspiracy" only list the other defendant whose name has been redacted, yet he is still facing the same charges. The indictment is dated July 12 2017. The dates of the listed crimes committed were when he would have been in the UK. They waited for him to come to U.S. rather than pursue extradition of a UK citizen for something that MAY not have been a crime back home. The scariest part to me is that he will go through a legal system that does not understand so much of his work, how he works, and why.

author: jpanhalt
author_rank: Super Contributor
timestamp: August 03, 2017, 10:51:04 pm
content: Rights and Wrongs do not cancel each other in the US.

author: LabSpokane
author_rank: Super Contributor
timestamp: August 03, 2017, 10:58:18 pm
content: The real problem with this is that this guy allegedly "disappeared" after arrest with no apparent access to legal counsel. That's just not Cricket in these here parts. I hope that is not true.I take no position on whether or not a crime was committed. I'll wait for the evidence to come out.

author: RGB255_0_0
author_rank: Frequent Contributor
timestamp: August 03, 2017, 11:48:21 pm
content: Quote from: jpanhalt on August 03, 2017, 10:51:04 pmBut it can gain you immunity in the right circumstance.If he hated publicity a few weeks back moaning about losing anonymity he must absolutely regret stopping Wannacry now.

author: CJay
author_rank: Super Contributor
timestamp: August 04, 2017, 11:02:10 am
content: Quote from: RGB255_0_0 on August 03, 2017, 11:48:21 pmI have no way of knowing if he's guilty of being involved with Kronos for illegal reasons or not but it's likely 'they' had their eye on him prior to Wannacry and this would have happened anyway, just without the publicity that's surrounding it now, for them to have done this to someone with such a profile sends a message.

author: G7PSK
author_rank: Super Contributor
timestamp: August 04, 2017, 03:44:57 pm
content: Another possibility, he is helping US security with something that they don't want the world to know about and the arrest and subsequent disappearance is just a cover.

author: MarkS
author_rank: Unknown
timestamp: August 05, 2017, 02:44:17 am
content: It seems like people want to defend him based solely on his actions with Wannacry. That action doesn't preclude him from being a bad actor in the hacking scene. It certainly doesn't excuse any prior crimes committed.