The guy known as MalwareTech is sure getting a lot of attention, very suddenly.
The British security researcher stopped the WannaCry ransomware from spreading further with a brilliant albeit accidental trick -- he bought an unregistered domain linked to the malware, thus inadvertently activating a "kill switch."
SEE ALSO:WannaCry ransomware attack possibly linked to North Korea
For his endeavour, he was awarded a $10,000 bounty by HackerOne, a network of ethical hackers and bug bounty programs.
He said on Twitter that he plans to split the bounty between charities and educational resources for students who cannot afford them:
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Since he revealed how he accidentally stopped a global cyber attack, MalwareTech has been doxxed by the British tabloids.
On his Twitter page and blog, there are no names, details, or head shots, which should be a clear indication that he wished to remain anonymous.
However, British tabloids outed him as 22-year-old Marcus Hutchins, who works for Los Angeles-based Kryptos Logic. They scouted around the depths of the internet to find his online footprint.
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This resulted in constant harassment:
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Tweet may have been deleted
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Factoids such as the blogger's love of surfing and pizza were unearthed:
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He was stalked:
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His friends were stalked:
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Fake rumours:
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Our hero had to find strategies to avoid journalists:
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Until there was just one option left:
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Fellow journos, leave him alone, please!
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