---
title: "Hacker Who Killed WannaCry Sentenced to Time Served"
description: "By killing the WannaCry ransomware, British cybersecurity expert Marcus Hutchins may have saved himself from a decade in jail and a $500,000 fine."
date: "2019-07-29"
modified: "2019-07-29"
authors:
  - name: "Kristin Houser"
    link: "https://futurism.com/authors/kristin"
url: "https://futurism.com/the-byte/hacker-killed-wannacry-sentenced"
categories:
  - "Cybersecurity"
  - "Future Society"
  - "Hacking"
tags:
  - "hacker"
  - "marcus hutchins"
  - "ransomware"
  - "the digest"
  - "wannacry"
---

# Hacker Who Killed WannaCry Sentenced to Time Served

![By killing the WannaCry ransomware, British cybersecurity expert Marcus Hutchins may have saved himself from a decade in jail and a $500,000 fine.](<https://futurism.com/wp-content/uploads/2019/07/hacker-killed-wannacry-sentenced-time-served.jpg>)
*\<em\>Image: Victor Tangermann\</em\>*

## WannaCry Me a River

In May 2017, malicious actors used the WannaCry [ransomware](<https://futurism.com/the-byte/mayors-paying-ransomware-hackers>) to cripple hospitals, banks, and companies across the globe — until British cybersecurity Marcus Hutchins [killed the malware](<https://arstechnica.com/information-technology/2017/05/wanna-decryptor-kill-switch-analysis/>) with a clever trick.

It now seems that those efforts earned Hutchins a "get out of jail free" card — and he [just cashed it in](<https://arstechnica.com/tech-policy/2019/07/wannacry-slayer-malware-author-marcus-hutchins-sentenced-to-time-served/>) to deal with a dark past.

## Blind Eye

Just three months after stopping the spread of [WannaCry](<https://futurism.com/laptop-infected-6-infamous-viruses>), Hutchins found himself locked up in a Las Vegas federal detention center for creating and spreading his own malware years prior.

This suggested that the U.S. government [wouldn't be willing](<https://futurism.com/white-hat-hacker-us-government-scary>) to let his major good deed wipe away his past transgressions.

On Friday, though, a judge sentenced Hutchins to time served for his previous crimes — the lightest possible sentence and well short of the potential 10 years in prison and $500,000 fine he [could've received](<https://www.documentcloud.org/documents/5972658-Marcus-Hutchins-plea-agreement.html#document/p2/a514692>).

## Pardon Me

According to Brian Klein, one of Hutchins' attorneys, the judge even thinks Hutchins could be pardoned for the crimes despite [entering a guilty plea](<https://techcrunch.com/2019/04/19/malwaretech-legal-case-over/>).

"We are thrilled that the judge recognized Marcus’ very important contributions to keeping the world safe and let him go home a free man today," Klein said, [according to *Ars Technica*](<https://arstechnica.com/tech-policy/2019/07/wannacry-slayer-malware-author-marcus-hutchins-sentenced-to-time-served/>). "Without precedent but more than appropriately, the judge suggested Marcus seek a pardon. We plan to explore those opportunities."

**READ MORE:** [WannaCry slayer, malware author Marcus Hutchins won’t go to prison](<https://arstechnica.com/tech-policy/2019/07/wannacry-slayer-malware-author-marcus-hutchins-sentenced-to-time-served/>) \[*Ars Technica*\]

**More on Marcus Hutchins:** *[It’s Now Scary to Be A White Hat Hacker Thanks to the US Government](<https://futurism.com/white-hat-hacker-us-government-scary>)*

### Author social links  
[LinkedIn](<https://www.linkedin.com/in/kristinjhouser>)