‘WannaCry’, the biggest cyberattack the world has seen, was stopped in its tracks on 13th May, 2017. British blogger Marcus Hutchins found the 'kill switch'. He was 22.
The ransomware had attacked the NHS, Renault, Telefónica, FedEx, and Boeing - causing damage estimated at up to $8 billion.
In this episode, Olly, Rebecca and Arion revisit Hutchins’ incredible story, from childhood computer programmer to criminal hacker and, eventually, British hero; consider when exactly their own children will eclipse their technical proficiency; and discover what ‘sinkholing’ is...
Further reading:
• ‘The Confessions of Marcus Hutchins, the Hacker Who Saved the Internet’ - a long read interview in ‘Wired’:
https://www.wired.com/story/confessions-marcus-hutchins-hacker-who-saved-the-internet/
• “I’m no hero”, Marcus Hutchins tells the Telegraph:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=h5dNdnG_t1U
• Follow Marcus Hutchins on Twitter: https://twitter.com/MalwareTechBlog
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The Retrospectors are Olly Mann, Rebecca Messina & Arion McNicoll, with Matt Hill.
Theme Music: Pass The Peas. Announcer: Bob Ravelli. Graphic Design: Terry Saunders. Edit Producer: Ollie Peart
Copyright: Rethink Audio / Olly Mann 2025.
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