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posted by takyon on Wednesday June 23 2021, @10:16PM   Printer-friendly
from the ______-didn't-kill-himself dept.

I just heard some sad news on talk radio - Horror Software creator John McAfee was found dead in his Spanish jail cell Wednesday evening. There weren't any more details. I'm sure everyone in the SoylentNews community will miss him - even if you didn't enjoy his work, there's no denying his contributions to popular culture. Truly an American icon.

Netcraft confirms it, as does NYPost - an "apparent suicide".

John McAfee was found dead in his cell in a prison near Barcelona on Wednesday. McAfee was awaiting extradition in a Spanish prison after being charged with tax evasion in the United States last year. McAfee was arrested in Spain in October after being indicted in the United States for tax evasion months earlier. He allegedly failed to file taxes for four years despite earning millions in income between 2014 and 2018 from promoting cryptocurrencies.

Also at the Associated Press, The Register, CNN, and CNBC.

See also: How To Uninstall McAfee Antivirus

Previously: John McAfee Announces He Will Run For President of the United States
On TV, John McAfee Says Cracking an iPhone is Trivial
Johnny Depp to Star in Movie About John McAfee
John McAfee's "Unhackable" Cryptocurrency Wallet Has Been Hacked (Again)
John McAfee Indicted for Tax Evasion


Original Submission #1Original Submission #2Original Submission #3Original Submission #4

Related Stories

John McAfee Announces He Will Run For President of the United States 36 comments

John McAfee running for president

Anti-virus software tycoon John McAfee plans to run for President, the developer confirmed on Tuesday. He will run under his own newly created "Cyber Party."

http://time.com/4025991/john-mcafee-running-for-president/?xid=tcoshare

The self-described "eccentric millionaire," known for a strange run-in with authorities in Belize three years ago, said his primary motivation to enter the race was the government's problems with security and surveillance.

"We are losing privacy at an alarming rate — we have none left. We've given up so much for the illusion of security and our government is simply dysfunctional," he said, adding that he plans to release an explainer for his new Cyber Party.

John McAfee is running [for] president

McAfee, developer of the first commercial anti-virus program, has said he is going to announce a bid for the White House, and will create the Cyber Party to do so. "I have a huge underground following on the web," he told CNN. The website McAfee2016.com has also popped up.


Original Submission #1Original Submission #2

On TV, John McAfee Says Cracking an iPhone is Trivial 58 comments

Russia Today reports

The US public doesn't need a Digital Security Commission; they need the FBI to stop deceiving everyone and tell the truth that it wants to spy on Americans, John McAfee, developer of the first commercial anti-virus program told RT's Ed Schultz.

[...] "The FBI wants Apple to change their software so that it removes the check for security, so that we don't check for security anymore. Once it has that software, they can use that software on any phone. But they say they only need it for one phone."

[...] "You need a hardware engineer and a [software] engineer. The hardware engineer takes the phone apart and copies the instruction set, which are the iOS and applications, and your memory. And then you run a program called a disassembler, which takes all the ones and zeros and gives you readable instructions. Then the coder sits down and he reads through. What he is looking for is the first access to the keypad, because that is the first thing you do when you input your pad. It'll take half an hour. When you see that, then he reads the instructions for where in memory this secret code is stored. It is that trivial--a half an hour.
...The FBI knows this, Apple knows this."

[...] "In either case, if they (the FBI) don't know, that is tragic; if they do know it, then they are deceiving the American public and Apple and everyone else by asking for a universal key."
Video

Do you see any flaws in McAffee's explanation?

Previous: Apple Wants Court To Rule If It Can Be Forced To Unlock iPhones
Seems Like Everyone has an Opinion About Apple vs. the FBI
Update: TPP-Exposing Journalist Ed Schultz Lands on His Feet at RT
John McAfee Announces He Will Run For President of the United States


Original Submission

Johnny Depp to Star in Movie About John McAfee 11 comments

If you have been craving more of that real-life, edge-of-your-seat drama we enjoyed following the adventures of John McAfee just a few years ago, you're in luck.

A movie about the notorious tech magnate is in the works, with actor Johnny Depp filling the lead role, according to The Hollywood Reporter. The dark comedy, titled "King of the Jungle," is based on a 2012 Wired article about a journalist's experience chronicling McAfee's journey from tech entrepreneur to cocaine addict to fugitive.

The article, "John McAfee's Last Stand," by Joshua Davis, follows McAfee as he loses his fortune and moves to the jungle of Belize, setting up a "Colonel Kurtz-like compound of guns, sex and madness," according to The Hollwood Reporter. The movie is about escalating paranoia, slippery reality and murder, according to the report.


Original Submission

John McAfee's "Unhackable" Cryptocurrency Wallet Has Been Hacked (Again) 16 comments

Submitted via IRC for Fnord666

A team of security researchers has a solid claim to $10,000, after meeting the three requirements of Bitfi's second bug bounty on its cryptocurrency wallet.

Remember John McAfee’s supposedly “unhackable” cryptocurrency wallet? It appears a group of researchers is about to prove the once-lauded antivirus pioneer wrong.

After cracking the so-called Bitfi wallet to play legendary game DOOM on it, today the researchers were able to successfully send signed transactions with the device – that is despite the “security” mechanisms Bitfi has in place to prevent attackers from doing that.

Well, that's a transaction made with a MitMed Bitfi, with the phrase and seed being sent to a remote machine. [...] That sounds a lot like Bounty 2 to me.

With this development in mind, the researchers believe they have fulfilled the conditions of Bitfi's $10,000 bug bounty. Bitfi had three criteria to claim the rewards: namely that researchers should be able to prove they can modify the device, connect to the Bitfi server, and send sensitive data with the device.

Source: https://thenextweb.com/hardfork/2018/08/13/bitfi-cryptocurrency-wallet-bounty/


Original Submission

John McAfee Indicted for Tax Evasion 57 comments

John McAfee Indicted for Tax Evasion:

An indictment was unsealed today charging John David McAfee with tax evasion and willful failure to file tax returns, announced Principal Deputy Assistant Attorney General Richard E. Zuckerman of the Justice Department's Tax Division and U.S. Attorney D. Michael Dunavant for the Western District of Tennessee. The June 15, 2020 indictment was unsealed following McAfee's arrest in Spain where he is pending extradition.

According to the indictment, John McAfee earned millions in income from promoting cryptocurrencies, consulting work, speaking engagements, and selling the rights to his life story for a documentary. From 2014 to 2018, McAfee allegedly failed to file tax returns, despite receiving considerable income from these sources. The indictment does not allege that during these years McAfee received any income or had any connection with the anti-virus company bearing his name.

According to the indictment, McAfee allegedly evaded his tax liability by directing his income to be paid into bank accounts and cryptocurrency exchange accounts in the names of nominees. The indictment further alleges McAfee attempted to evade the IRS by concealing assets, including real property, a vehicle, and a yacht, in the names of others.

If convicted, McAfee faces a maximum sentence of five years in prison on each count of tax evasion and a maximum sentence of one year in prison on each count of willful failure to file a tax return. McAfee also faces a period of supervised release, restitution, and monetary penalties.

Coverage at:
ArsTechnica, AP News, Reuters, TechCrunch, and others.


Original Submission

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(1)
  • (Score: -1, Insightful) by Anonymous Coward on Wednesday June 23 2021, @10:02PM (3 children)

    by Anonymous Coward on Wednesday June 23 2021, @10:02PM (#1148480)

    Actually the police chief of Belize City finally caught up with him

    • (Score: -1, Offtopic) by Anonymous Coward on Wednesday June 23 2021, @10:39PM

      by Anonymous Coward on Wednesday June 23 2021, @10:39PM (#1148500)

      Are you trying to imply that he might have Epsteined himself?

    • (Score: 2) by DeathMonkey on Thursday June 24 2021, @05:06PM (1 child)

      by DeathMonkey (1380) on Thursday June 24 2021, @05:06PM (#1148777) Journal

      Six degrees of Hillary Clinton

      Well, at least they're now admitting it's all bullshit because you can connect anybody to anybody within six degrees.

      • (Score: 0) by Anonymous Coward on Thursday June 24 2021, @11:28PM

        by Anonymous Coward on Thursday June 24 2021, @11:28PM (#1148946)

        Ah, so you did it

  • (Score: 1, Funny) by Anonymous Coward on Wednesday June 23 2021, @10:03PM (3 children)

    by Anonymous Coward on Wednesday June 23 2021, @10:03PM (#1148481)

    He better have a good alibi.

    • (Score: 3, Funny) by turgid on Wednesday June 23 2021, @10:17PM (2 children)

      by turgid (4318) Subscriber Badge on Wednesday June 23 2021, @10:17PM (#1148490) Journal

      He was round at Dr Solomon's house playing poker and drinking whisky.

      • (Score: 0) by Anonymous Coward on Wednesday June 23 2021, @11:29PM (1 child)

        by Anonymous Coward on Wednesday June 23 2021, @11:29PM (#1148514)

        With coke and hookers?

        • (Score: 4, Funny) by Farmer Tim on Thursday June 24 2021, @08:18AM

          by Farmer Tim (6490) on Thursday June 24 2021, @08:18AM (#1148634)
          That’s no way to talk about Mavis Beacon.
          --
          Came for the news, stayed for the soap opera.
  • (Score: 1, Interesting) by Anonymous Coward on Wednesday June 23 2021, @10:05PM (3 children)

    by Anonymous Coward on Wednesday June 23 2021, @10:05PM (#1148482)

    He says that he had at least 47 children. You would think with all those dependents he can claim he would be entitled to a tax refund!!! Sure, he might go broke paying child support but at least he shouldn't be paying taxes.

    (then again, given that he jumps from country to country, the question is how many of those children can he claim in the U.S.).

    • (Score: 0) by Anonymous Coward on Thursday June 24 2021, @04:30AM

      by Anonymous Coward on Thursday June 24 2021, @04:30AM (#1148594)

      Based on his tax situation and libertardarian leanings, I'm guessing he's a "free spirit" that refuses to be tied down by the child support thugs.

    • (Score: 2) by DeathMonkey on Thursday June 24 2021, @05:44PM (1 child)

      by DeathMonkey (1380) on Thursday June 24 2021, @05:44PM (#1148797) Journal

      He says that he had at least 47 children. You would think with all those dependents he can claim he would be entitled to a tax refund!!!

      Or they're all fake and that's why he was in jail in the first place!

      • (Score: 0) by Anonymous Coward on Sunday June 27 2021, @01:48AM

        by Anonymous Coward on Sunday June 27 2021, @01:48AM (#1149831)

        Or maybe there is disagreement over who gets to claim the children as dependents (him or the mother(s))?

  • (Score: 5, Informative) by takyon on Wednesday June 23 2021, @10:16PM (8 children)

    by takyon (881) <takyonNO@SPAMsoylentnews.org> on Wednesday June 23 2021, @10:16PM (#1148489) Journal

    https://twitter.com/officialmcafee/status/1200864283766251521?lang=en [twitter.com]

    John McAfee
    @officialmcafee

    Nov 30, 2019
    Getting subtle messages from U.S. officials saying, in effect: "We're coming for you McAfee! We're going to kill yourself". I got a tattoo today just in case. If I suicide myself, I didn't. I was whackd. Check my right arm.

    $WHACKD available only on " rel="url2html-13480">http://McAfeedex.com:)

    --
    [SIG] 10/28/2017: Soylent Upgrade v14 [soylentnews.org]
    • (Score: 5, Interesting) by takyon on Wednesday June 23 2021, @10:52PM (6 children)

      by takyon (881) <takyonNO@SPAMsoylentnews.org> on Wednesday June 23 2021, @10:52PM (#1148506) Journal

      https://twitter.com/officialmcafee/status/1137777348919681024?lang=en [twitter.com]

      John McAfee
      @officialmcafee

      Jun 9, 2019
      I've collected files on corruption in governments. For the first time, I'm naming names and specifics. I'll begin with a corrupt CIA agent and two Bahamian officials. Coming today. If I'm arrested or disappear, 31+ terrabytes of incriminating data will be released to the press.

      --
      [SIG] 10/28/2017: Soylent Upgrade v14 [soylentnews.org]
      • (Score: 1, Insightful) by Anonymous Coward on Thursday June 24 2021, @01:25AM (5 children)

        by Anonymous Coward on Thursday June 24 2021, @01:25AM (#1148534)

        Well, I guess we'll see if that was all bullshit, like everything else he said, or whether it comes true. If "they" were going to $WHACK him, "they" wouldn't wait to see if his extradition goes forward before doing it.

        He died like he lived, spewing BS and duping dopes.

        • (Score: 2) by takyon on Thursday June 24 2021, @01:44AM (4 children)

          by takyon (881) <takyonNO@SPAMsoylentnews.org> on Thursday June 24 2021, @01:44AM (#1148543) Journal

          "They" do it just as he gets the bad news, creating FUD around his death. But it's perfectly reasonable for a coked up 75-year-old to off themselves rather than face years of legal trouble. As for the tweets, it could just be the ultimate troll.

          Yeah, a 31 "terrabyte" data dump would be a nice final gift to the world. At that size, it would probably contain lots of videos. Also, it would be funny if random files in the dump contained viruses that can't be detected by McAfee and other AV software.

          --
          [SIG] 10/28/2017: Soylent Upgrade v14 [soylentnews.org]
          • (Score: -1, Spam) by Anonymous Coward on Thursday June 24 2021, @02:35AM (2 children)

            by Anonymous Coward on Thursday June 24 2021, @02:35AM (#1148569)

            "Also, it would be funny if random files in the dump contained viruses that can't be detected by McAfee and other AV software"

            CNN-style "It's illegal to view Hillary's e-mails" Jewish scaremongering. McAfee's crime was, of course, calling out Jewish domination in one of those tweets you didn't mention. Now that the Jews are openly exterminating the Goyim with vaccines, it's the perfect time for them to openly get rid of their enemies for fun and profit. If there is a deadman's data dump full of viruses "undetectable by normal means," you can rest assured that they were written and put there by Jews just like all the other state-sponsored malware "undetectable by normal means." Everybody still knows the Jews did it, though.

            • (Score: -1, Troll) by Anonymous Coward on Thursday June 24 2021, @08:30PM (1 child)

              by Anonymous Coward on Thursday June 24 2021, @08:30PM (#1148892)

              i wonder if the dedicated Jew defender who always marks these posts "spam" works for soylentnews....

              • (Score: 0) by Anonymous Coward on Friday June 25 2021, @03:14AM

                by Anonymous Coward on Friday June 25 2021, @03:14AM (#1148996)

                I wasn't sure whether these leaks might be legit, but I now I know they are.

                Somebody is already trying to associate them with antisemitic garbage.

          • (Score: 1, Insightful) by Anonymous Coward on Thursday June 24 2021, @12:47PM

            by Anonymous Coward on Thursday June 24 2021, @12:47PM (#1148684)

            But it's perfectly reasonable for a coked up 75-year-old to off themselves rather than face years of legal trouble.

            Judges don't like jailing old people and old people know it. Oldies are far, far more likely to just not care about legal bullshit.

    • (Score: 5, Interesting) by takyon on Wednesday June 23 2021, @10:54PM

      by takyon (881) <takyonNO@SPAMsoylentnews.org> on Wednesday June 23 2021, @10:54PM (#1148507) Journal

      https://twitter.com/officialmcafee/status/1316801215083225096?lang=en [twitter.com]

      John McAfee
      @officialmcafee

      Oct 15, 2020
      I am content in here. I have friends.

      The food is good. All is well.

      Know that if I hang myself, a la Epstein, it will be no fault of mine.

      --
      [SIG] 10/28/2017: Soylent Upgrade v14 [soylentnews.org]
  • (Score: 2, Funny) by Anonymous Coward on Wednesday June 23 2021, @10:20PM

    by Anonymous Coward on Wednesday June 23 2021, @10:20PM (#1148491)

    After his comments about a certain email scandal, he didn't have a suspiciously Italian prison guard [babylonbee.com] did he?

  • (Score: 0) by Anonymous Coward on Wednesday June 23 2021, @10:21PM

    by Anonymous Coward on Wednesday June 23 2021, @10:21PM (#1148493)

    Must've been the bath salts. Locked alone in a cell, no one's face to chew off, so, you know.

  • (Score: 0, Troll) by Runaway1956 on Wednesday June 23 2021, @10:29PM (12 children)

    by Runaway1956 (2926) Subscriber Badge on Wednesday June 23 2021, @10:29PM (#1148495) Journal

    Previously: John McAfee Announces He Will Run For President of the United States

    So, Zombie John will be running against Zombie Joe? I didn't think he was a Republican, so he'll be running as an Independent? Speaking of which - how fast does a zombie run?

    --
    I'm going to buy my defensive radar from Temu, just like Venezuela!
    • (Score: 2) by Thexalon on Wednesday June 23 2021, @10:32PM

      by Thexalon (636) on Wednesday June 23 2021, @10:32PM (#1148496)

      His presidential run was in 2016, in the Libertarian Party. He lost to Gary Johnson in the primary, but would have been up against Hillary Clinton and Donald Trump and Jill Stein had he made it to the general.

      --
      "Think of how stupid the average person is. Then realize half of 'em are stupider than that." - George Carlin
    • (Score: 1, Funny) by Anonymous Coward on Wednesday June 23 2021, @10:33PM (3 children)

      by Anonymous Coward on Wednesday June 23 2021, @10:33PM (#1148497)

      So, Zombie John will be running against Zombie Joe?

      No but he'll defo be voting Democrat from now on.

      • (Score: 0) by Anonymous Coward on Wednesday June 23 2021, @10:47PM (2 children)

        by Anonymous Coward on Wednesday June 23 2021, @10:47PM (#1148504)
        well... 'defo' is a strong word, at least until something resembling evidence turns up.
        • (Score: 0) by Anonymous Coward on Thursday June 24 2021, @05:48AM (1 child)

          by Anonymous Coward on Thursday June 24 2021, @05:48AM (#1148610)

          I'm not sure if it's short for de-facto or definitely, either could fit.

          • (Score: 0) by Anonymous Coward on Thursday June 24 2021, @03:39PM

            by Anonymous Coward on Thursday June 24 2021, @03:39PM (#1148739)
            ... provided you believe certain unproven stuff.
    • (Score: 2) by Tork on Wednesday June 23 2021, @10:36PM

      by Tork (3914) Subscriber Badge on Wednesday June 23 2021, @10:36PM (#1148498) Journal

      About this fast: https://m.youtube.com/watch?v=2tszIXno2Q8 [youtube.com]

      --
      🏳️‍🌈 Proud Ally 🏳️‍🌈 - Give us ribbiti or make us croak! 🐸
    • (Score: 0) by Anonymous Coward on Thursday June 24 2021, @01:28AM

      by Anonymous Coward on Thursday June 24 2021, @01:28AM (#1148535)

      They run faster than Arkansans.

    • (Score: 5, Funny) by JoeMerchant on Thursday June 24 2021, @02:19AM

      by JoeMerchant (3937) on Thursday June 24 2021, @02:19AM (#1148558)

      I'd vote Rob Zombie for President...

      --
      🌻🌻🌻 [google.com]
    • (Score: 3, Touché) by DeathMonkey on Thursday June 24 2021, @05:46PM (2 children)

      by DeathMonkey (1380) on Thursday June 24 2021, @05:46PM (#1148799) Journal

      So, Zombie John will be running against Zombie Joe?

      Hmmm....a criminal tax cheat with zero brain activity running as a Republican. Wouldn't be the first time!

      • (Score: 2) by Runaway1956 on Thursday June 24 2021, @06:00PM (1 child)

        by Runaway1956 (2926) Subscriber Badge on Thursday June 24 2021, @06:00PM (#1148810) Journal

        ROFL, the current tax cheat with zero brain activity is a Democrat.

        --
        I'm going to buy my defensive radar from Temu, just like Venezuela!
    • (Score: 2) by Azuma Hazuki on Thursday June 24 2021, @09:29PM

      by Azuma Hazuki (5086) on Thursday June 24 2021, @09:29PM (#1148920) Journal

      Depends on the subtype. There are "fast zombies" dating back to the early 80s IIRC. Don't worry, though, they're on an all-brains diet so basically the entire South bar a few large cities should be fine. ...okay, in DeQueen's case it'd be gentrification, but eh, that's the free market for ya =P

      --
      I am "that girl" your mother warned you about...
  • (Score: 2, Interesting) by bzipitidoo on Wednesday June 23 2021, @11:24PM (13 children)

    by bzipitidoo (4388) on Wednesday June 23 2021, @11:24PM (#1148512) Journal

    I haven't paid much attention to McAfee. Is he a rich tax cheat, a hero and pioneer of computing, a delusional paranoid and spinner of tall tales, or a persecuted and silenced victim of corrupt powerful people? Maybe a lifelong career in security does something to a person's mind? Pry open enough closets, and you will find skeletons. And make enemies.

    • (Score: 2) by Tork on Wednesday June 23 2021, @11:40PM (5 children)

      by Tork (3914) Subscriber Badge on Wednesday June 23 2021, @11:40PM (#1148516) Journal
      Well if you were on my FB friends list you'd be at: "Ah, the Clintons must have killed him" followed by a few uncomfortable reminders that Trump was in Epstein's circle, too. But nothing about McAfee at all except the occasional reference to his tweet about not being suicidal.
      --
      🏳️‍🌈 Proud Ally 🏳️‍🌈 - Give us ribbiti or make us croak! 🐸
      • (Score: 0, Troll) by Anonymous Coward on Thursday June 24 2021, @03:01AM (4 children)

        by Anonymous Coward on Thursday June 24 2021, @03:01AM (#1148575)

        Trump wasn't nearly as far into Epstein's circle as Bill and Andy. That was a clean-up job for the royal lizards, carried out by the Clinton suicider squad.

        • (Score: 4, Informative) by Tork on Thursday June 24 2021, @03:22AM (3 children)

          by Tork (3914) Subscriber Badge on Thursday June 24 2021, @03:22AM (#1148580) Journal
          Trump was sitting in office when it went down, and he ignited an attempted insurrection just to keep sitting in said office. You know you've got an uphill battle defending that man despite noone coming to Clinton's defense. 🤡
          --
          🏳️‍🌈 Proud Ally 🏳️‍🌈 - Give us ribbiti or make us croak! 🐸
    • (Score: 3, Interesting) by Runaway1956 on Wednesday June 23 2021, @11:49PM (1 child)

      by Runaway1956 (2926) Subscriber Badge on Wednesday June 23 2021, @11:49PM (#1148518) Journal

      He was probably all of the above - plus he was missing a few marbles even before he started using bath salts for supositories. No one is going to sort McAfee out now. A psychoanalyst might have sorted him, but it's too late for that now. (Not that I place much faith in shrinks, but that was the person most likely to figure John out.)

      --
      I'm going to buy my defensive radar from Temu, just like Venezuela!
      • (Score: 1, Interesting) by Anonymous Coward on Thursday June 24 2021, @04:40AM

        by Anonymous Coward on Thursday June 24 2021, @04:40AM (#1148595)

        There's a documentary about him. He starts drinking in the first scene and gets more and more sloppy throughout. He was a loudmouth bore, just dull and drunk. Surprized you have a blind spot for that type of personality trait.

    • (Score: 3, Informative) by JoeMerchant on Thursday June 24 2021, @02:21AM

      by JoeMerchant (3937) on Thursday June 24 2021, @02:21AM (#1148563)

      Oh, man, you've gotta watch Gringo - it's almost as entertaining as Hunter S. Thompson stuff.

      https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Gringo:_The_Dangerous_Life_of_John_McAfee [wikipedia.org]

      --
      🌻🌻🌻 [google.com]
    • (Score: 2) by bradley13 on Thursday June 24 2021, @07:38AM

      by bradley13 (3053) on Thursday June 24 2021, @07:38AM (#1148631) Homepage Journal

      I haven't paid much attention to McAfee. Is he a rich tax cheat, a hero and pioneer of computing, a delusional paranoid and spinner of tall tales, or a persecuted and silenced victim of corrupt powerful people?

      Yes.

      --
      Everyone is somebody else's weirdo.
    • (Score: 2) by Thexalon on Thursday June 24 2021, @04:36PM (2 children)

      by Thexalon (636) on Thursday June 24 2021, @04:36PM (#1148762)

      While he was in Belize, he was openly talking about both recreational drug use and paying teenagers for sex, and then had to leave because he was accused of murdering his next-door neighbor and didn't want to answer the police's questions. And he also was a tax cheat, not paying a dime on millions in income, spending a bunch of time in international waters trying to avoid the law.

      I'm not going to suspect a conspiracy against him without evidence.

      --
      "Think of how stupid the average person is. Then realize half of 'em are stupider than that." - George Carlin
      • (Score: 0) by Anonymous Coward on Thursday June 24 2021, @08:35PM

        by Anonymous Coward on Thursday June 24 2021, @08:35PM (#1148895)

        Sepending on the age of the "teenagers", i don't see a problem. The neighbor probably deserved it. Fuck the IRS. They shouldn't even exist and have no rightful claim.

      • (Score: 0) by Anonymous Coward on Friday June 25 2021, @03:19AM

        by Anonymous Coward on Friday June 25 2021, @03:19AM (#1148997)

        not paying a dime on millions in income

        Well yes but how is that different from any other bourgeois?

  • (Score: 5, Interesting) by Mojibake Tengu on Thursday June 24 2021, @01:05AM (5 children)

    by Mojibake Tengu (8598) on Thursday June 24 2021, @01:05AM (#1148529) Journal

    ‘If I suicide myself, I didn’t’: Supporters dredge up old McAfee tweets to cry foul over death as his Instagram page posts ‘Q’

    John McAfee’s death has set off numerous conspiracy theories, tributes and criticism of the extradition to the US the now-deceased antivirus magnate was facing.

    McAfee was found dead in his prison cell in Barcelona only hours after a Spanish court approved his extradition to the US, where he was facing charges of tax evasion and other financial crimes.

    A statement from Spain’s Ministry of Justice has indicated the cause of death for McAfee could be suicide, a detail that has set off many who see a conspiracy, citing past McAfee tweets where he warned his followers that if it was ever reported he committed suicide, “a la Epstein,” then it was a professional hit.

    RIP John McAfee who died from apparent suicide while awaiting extradition. Problem is: he was claiming to do well in prison and insisted that "if I hang myself, a la Epstein, it will be no fault of mine"🤔 https://t.co/1oyEMPtMbZpic.twitter.com/J8E5ugsx43 [t.co]
            — Coffeezilla (@coffeebreak_YT) June 23, 2021

            John McAfee made a video in 2020 calling out the deep state...a week after that video was made there was a warrant out for his arrest...a year later he is found dead...John McAfee did not kill himself.
            — samanthamarika (@samanthamarika1) June 23, 2021

    One 2019 tweet from McAfee, who was known for freely speaking his mind, however outlandishly, warned the former tech mogul was getting “subtle messages” from US government officials that they were going to have him killed and make it look like a suicide. He even showed off a tattoo, reading “whackd,” which Twitter users began turning into a hashtag, along with #McAfeeDidntKillHimself, shortly after his death was announced.

            Getting subtle messages from U.S. officials saying, in effect: "We're coming for you McAfee! We're going to kill yourself". I got a tattoo today just in case. If I suicide myself, I didn't. I was whackd. Check my right arm.$WHACKD available only on https://t.co/HdSEYi9krq:) [t.co] pic.twitter.com/rJ0Vi2Hpjj
            — John McAfee (@officialmcafee) November 30, 2019

            McAfee was found dead today. #McAfeeDidntKillHimselfhttps://t.co/G52bP1Vn94
            — Dispassionate Ancap (@dark4181) June 23, 2021

    The other tweet warned McAfee’s followers that he was “content” shortly after his arrest in October 2020 in Spain.

    I am content in here. I have friends.The food is good. All is well. Know that if I hang myself, a la Epstein, it will be no fault of mine.
            — John McAfee (@officialmcafee) October 15, 2020

            Imagine if the John McAfee suicide rumors end up being true after he shared this pic.twitter.com/G00Ato6DCK
            — Alec Hale-Pletka (@alechp) June 23, 2021

            BREAKING: John McAfee “apparent suicide” just hours after extradition to the USA was approved by courts.#McAfeeDidntKillHimselfpic.twitter.com/pFZ7Qo3EX9
            — Pepe Midnight 🇺🇸🦅 (@EmotionsCloud) June 23, 2021

    To add to conspiracy theories, users also began noticing a post – the first in months – to McAfee’s Instagram account of a solo ‘Q’, a reference many connected to the QAnon movement, which connects numerous conspiracy theories to the government ‘deep state’ that McAfee had also been critical of later in life.

            This was posted by whoever has access to McAfee’s Instagram one hour ago: pic.twitter.com/1v2JXDq2kM
            — Cassandra Fairbanks (@CassandraRules) June 23, 2021

    McAfee’s death also led critics to blast the US court system and his impending extradition to the US.

    “Europe should not extradite those accused of non-violent crimes to a court system so unfair – and prison system so cruel – that native-born defendants would rather die than become subject to it,” tweeted Edward Snowden, himself a fugitive from the US after blowing the whistle on the National Security Agency’s mass surveillance.

    Snowden warned that jailed journalist and Wikileaks founder Julian Assange, who is also facing possible extradition to the US, could be next.

            Europe should not extradite those accused of non-violent crimes to a court system so unfair—and prison system so cruel—that native-born defendants would rather die than become subject to it. Julian Assange could be next. Until the system is reformed, a moratorium should remain. https://t.co/tUociySmVy [t.co]
            — Edward Snowden (@Snowden) June 23, 2021

    Other McAfee supporters simply mourned the man’s passing and expressed support for his wife, Janice.

            in the wake of this absolutely devastating news, i’d like to send my most sincere condolences to @theemrsmcafee. please think of her, she has demonstrated such courage and resilience throughout this past year. a wonderful lady that deserves all of our support. we love you janice.
            — MJ (@morganisawizard) June 23, 2021

            Every man dies. Not every man really lives. pic.twitter.com/DnM2cfSHb2
            — Stephen L. Miller (@redsteeze) June 23, 2021

    --
    Rust programming language offends both my Intelligence and my Spirit.
    • (Score: 3, Touché) by vux984 on Thursday June 24 2021, @02:41AM (1 child)

      by vux984 (5045) on Thursday June 24 2021, @02:41AM (#1148571)

      Snowden warned that jailed journalist and Wikileaks founder Julian Assange, who is also facing possible extradition to the US, could be next.

      All I see there is that the the real question is: Why did Snowden kill McAfee and why is he threatening Assange?

      In all seriousness; I don't know where truth begins or ends with McAfee, but I hope neither Assange or Snowden are ever subjected to the American "justice" system.

      • (Score: 1, Touché) by Anonymous Coward on Thursday June 24 2021, @02:28PM

        by Anonymous Coward on Thursday June 24 2021, @02:28PM (#1148710)

        >> I hope neither Assange or Snowden are ever subjected to the American "justice" system.

        I dunno, it turned Reality Winner into a model citizen pretty quickly.

    • (Score: 0) by Anonymous Coward on Thursday June 24 2021, @05:44AM (2 children)

      by Anonymous Coward on Thursday June 24 2021, @05:44AM (#1148609)

      Catalonia secessionists got out of jail recently. Not becase they repented, all the contrary, but because the Prime Minister needs their votes in Congress or will be kicked out of power. ETA terrorist are getting moved to prisions under control of Basque nationalists. Same reason, it's the bill to stay in power, not because the law says so. They are event talking publicly about how the State is weak, and the PM just smiles like a dumb.

      So maybe McAfee morale was down. USA IRS wants taxes when abroad, get in jail. Get the PM by the balls, get out of jail or at least better treatment.

      Spain is a Paella Republic. Even Morocco have been abusing the current Goverment "aptitudes". If USA wants a better deal for the military bases, now it's the time.

      • (Score: 0) by Anonymous Coward on Thursday June 24 2021, @08:39PM (1 child)

        by Anonymous Coward on Thursday June 24 2021, @08:39PM (#1148900)

        #freecatalonia

        • (Score: 0) by Anonymous Coward on Thursday June 24 2021, @10:27PM

          by Anonymous Coward on Thursday June 24 2021, @10:27PM (#1148934)

          Free? That's a price that makes Putin happy. Another Russian Navy base in the Mediterranean Sea, yay!

  • (Score: -1, Offtopic) by Anonymous Coward on Thursday June 24 2021, @01:07AM (4 children)

    by Anonymous Coward on Thursday June 24 2021, @01:07AM (#1148530)

    That fiction can always be found in abundance, while the truth is scarce.

    • (Score: 2, Funny) by Anonymous Coward on Thursday June 24 2021, @01:28AM (2 children)

      by Anonymous Coward on Thursday June 24 2021, @01:28AM (#1148536)

      Put Rudy G. on the case! He'll get to the bottom of it!

      • (Score: 0) by Anonymous Coward on Thursday June 24 2021, @03:33PM

        by Anonymous Coward on Thursday June 24 2021, @03:33PM (#1148735)

        He'll get to the bottom alright, the bottom of the barrel.

      • (Score: 2) by DeathMonkey on Thursday June 24 2021, @05:54PM

        by DeathMonkey (1380) on Thursday June 24 2021, @05:54PM (#1148806) Journal

        Put Rudy G. on the case! He'll get to the bottom of it!

        Offer not valid in New York State!

        Rudy Giuliani suspended from practice of law in New York [go.com]

        The New York Bar Association "has sustained its burden of proving that respondent made knowing false and misleading factual statements to support his claim that the presidential election was stolen from his client," the court's decision said. "There is uncontroverted evidence that respondent communicated demonstrably false and misleading statements to courts, lawmakers and the public at large in his capacity as lawyer for former President Donald J. Trump and the Trump campaign in connection with Trump's failed effort at reelection in 2020."

    • (Score: 0) by Anonymous Coward on Thursday June 24 2021, @02:00AM

      by Anonymous Coward on Thursday June 24 2021, @02:00AM (#1148549)

      Well obviously. There is only one way that things could be true, but an almost infinite number of ways they could be false.

  • (Score: 1) by bluehorizons on Thursday June 24 2021, @02:40AM

    by bluehorizons (1141) on Thursday June 24 2021, @02:40AM (#1148570)

    I hear he writes clean code. Something to do with windows. What is that? I'll take my answer off line.

    --
    There is nothing general about the general public.
  • (Score: 1, Flamebait) by EJ on Thursday June 24 2021, @02:42AM (4 children)

    by EJ (2452) on Thursday June 24 2021, @02:42AM (#1148573)

    Are we supposed to blame Biden now? I'm confused.

    • (Score: 0, Troll) by Anonymous Coward on Thursday June 24 2021, @03:05AM (3 children)

      by Anonymous Coward on Thursday June 24 2021, @03:05AM (#1148576)

      Why would you blame Biden? He's just a confused old man doing what he's told and trying to read from a teleprompter.

      • (Score: 0, Insightful) by Anonymous Coward on Thursday June 24 2021, @07:48AM

        by Anonymous Coward on Thursday June 24 2021, @07:48AM (#1148633)

        Atleast he doesn't try to make up words when he makes a mistake, like the head cheetos does.

      • (Score: 1, Troll) by DeathMonkey on Thursday June 24 2021, @05:51PM (1 child)

        by DeathMonkey (1380) on Thursday June 24 2021, @05:51PM (#1148802) Journal

        Thanks for reminding me how nice it is to have a President who can read!

        • (Score: 0) by Anonymous Coward on Friday June 25 2021, @01:22AM

          by Anonymous Coward on Friday June 25 2021, @01:22AM (#1148978)

          That's a pretty low bar you've set there, for the job of President. Explains the last few democrat candidates I guess. Is it some sort of affirmative action or something?

  • (Score: 2) by looorg on Thursday June 24 2021, @10:17AM (5 children)

    by looorg (578) on Thursday June 24 2021, @10:17AM (#1148654)

    Was he once upon a time actually a good programmer? I never really gave it that much thought. I don't really recall McAfee AV when it was first released. His early jobs has sort of been overshadowed by his later shenanigans and heavy drug usage.

    • (Score: 2) by DannyB on Thursday June 24 2021, @03:21PM (3 children)

      by DannyB (5839) Subscriber Badge on Thursday June 24 2021, @03:21PM (#1148727) Journal

      Once upon a time Hans Reiser [wikipedia.org] of ReiserFS [wikipedia.org] fame was a good programmer.

      --
      If we sing a slaying song tonight, what tools will be used for the slaying?
      • (Score: 2) by looorg on Thursday June 24 2021, @04:02PM (2 children)

        by looorg (578) on Thursday June 24 2021, @04:02PM (#1148753)

        It's not that good programmers can't be bad people or do bad things. It was more like was he even once upon a time actually a good programmer or was McAfee more of manager and brand guy then an actual code monkey?

        I seem to recall some anecdote, that I don't know if it's true or not, that Bill wasn't a very good programmer either. Someone said something about some code snippet and how crap and bad it was and it got all uncomfortable cause it turned out it was something Bill wrote back in the day. But he was clearly a very savvy businessman. That is just hard to deny.

        • (Score: 2) by DannyB on Thursday June 24 2021, @04:37PM

          by DannyB (5839) Subscriber Badge on Thursday June 24 2021, @04:37PM (#1148763) Journal

          It is hard to deny that Bill knew what he was doing. At age 19 he understood the significance of the Altair 8800. He pitched his BASIC language to MITS telling them they were working on it and it was almost finished. In truth, he had not even begun. I recently saw a good YouTube video about this. It included the story of emulating the 8080 instruction set on the school computer, hoping they go the emulation right. Creating the BASIC. Flying to the demo of BASIC to show MITS a nearly complete product. Hoping it would work. Hoping it would even load. Untested on the real actual Altair 8800 hardware. The paper tape reader / boot loader was written during the flight.

          --
          If we sing a slaying song tonight, what tools will be used for the slaying?
        • (Score: 3, Interesting) by Thexalon on Thursday June 24 2021, @05:23PM

          by Thexalon (636) on Thursday June 24 2021, @05:23PM (#1148790)

          My impression from Joel Spolsky's account [joelonsoftware.com] is that BillG was at least a pretty good software architect / designer, even if his code wasn't great. I always got the impression Paul Allen was really the coding brains in early Microsoft (it definitely wasn't Ballmer).

          As for early McAfee AV, if I recall from my youth playing around with DOS machines it wasn't all that sophisticated: It basically had a list of byte strings to look for in files, and would go through everything on disk searching for those strings on that list. That wouldn't work now, but back then most viruses hadn't been up against something like that before McAfee AV, so they weren't adept at hiding from it. Also, the disks they were searching through were typically under 1 Mb, so that didn't take *that* long even though the machines in question weren't anything remotely fast by modern standards.

          If you want to look for a contemporary who by all appearances really knew his stuff, Peter Norton would qualify: The original Norton Utilities relied on features of DOS that weren't generally known outside of Microsoft (and maybe Seattle Computing), bypassing DOS's features at the BIOS level (e.g. his "undelete" went into the FAT control blocks), and other fairly sophisticated techniques. One of my favorite computing books from that era, Undocumented DOS [goodreads.com], gets into some of the techniques Norton used.

          --
          "Think of how stupid the average person is. Then realize half of 'em are stupider than that." - George Carlin
    • (Score: 2) by takyon on Friday June 25 2021, @01:24AM

      by takyon (881) <takyonNO@SPAMsoylentnews.org> on Friday June 25 2021, @01:24AM (#1148979) Journal

      Wikipedia [wikipedia.org] puts him at NASA working on the Apollo program, Univac, Xerox as an operating system architect, Computer Sciences Corporation, Booz Allen Hamilton, and Lockheed, all before he founded McAfee to sell anti-virus software. Sounds like an interesting career, at least.

      --
      [SIG] 10/28/2017: Soylent Upgrade v14 [soylentnews.org]
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