McAfee antivirus software was ubiquitous in the 1990s, and its creator John McAfee helped define the modern cybersecurity industry. McAfee was an archetype of the Silicon Valley founder - bombastic, enigmatic and brilliant. But his life would take a dark turn. Reporter Jamie Tarabay investigated the early days of his career and found that the warning signs were there from the beginning.
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There was a distinct moment when John McAfee crossed the line from eccentric technology mogul to possible villain. It was when his neighbor was found with a gunshot wound to the head, and McAfee, facing questions from police, fled from his home in Belize.
That, of course, was not the end for McAfee. He reemerged as a cryptocurrency kingmaker, ran a high-profile campaign for US president (twice) and was charged with tax evasion and fraud before dying by suicide in a Spanish jail cell.
McAfee lived an extreme existence, and the absurdity of the events is practically unmatched. But what happened later in life was enabled, in large part, by something deeply ingrained in our culture. McAfee’s entrepreneurial success in the 1990s lent him legitimacy that he exploited to dangerous effect.
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McAfee is the subject of the new season of Foundering, a podcast from Bloomberg Technology. Using interviews with McAfee’s colleagues, acquaintances, family members and investigators - some of whom have never spoken publicly about him before - the six-part series inspects the ways McAfee capitalized on his reputation in ways that caused harm. The podcast demystifies lies he told throughout his life, reveals secrets he kept and resolves questions surrounding his public and decades-long self-destruction.
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