The Story Of John McAfee: The Man Behind McAfee Anti-Virus Software

Highlights

• John McAfee rose to prominence in the 1980s after founding McAfee Associates, a software company known for selling commercial computer security software
• He left the company in 1994, and Intel purchased it for $7.7 billion in 2010
• He was discovered dead after Spain’s top court ordered his extradition to the United States.

According to officials, John McAfee, the creator of McAfee anti-virus software, committed suicide in a Barcelona jail on Wednesday (June 23). The 75-year-old was found dead just hours after a Spanish court granted his extradition to the United States to face tax evasion allegations from 2014 to 2018. The computer programmer rose to prominence in the 1980s after founding McAfee Associates, a software company known for selling commercial computer security software.

John McAfee left the company in 1994, and it was purchased by Intel for $7.7 billion in 2010. McAfee (the firm) was originally a part of Intel’s cybersecurity division. In 2016, Intel split McAfee off as a separate security company.

Early Life of John McAfee

McAfee was born in the United Kingdom in 1945, and his parents relocated him to Virginia when he was a child. His alcoholic father committed suicide when he was 15 years old. In a 2012 interview with Wired magazine, McAfee stated, “Every day I wake up with him.” McAfee participated in different ventures after leaving the company he established — McAfee sold all his shares. 

He created the firm that produced PowWow, one of the earliest instant messaging and chat programs for Windows operating systems, in the mid-1990s. Later, he invested in firewall manufacturer ZoneAlarm and joined its board of directors.

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What Happened After That?

He founded the Belize-based company QuorumEx, which promised to produce herbal antibiotics. His research lab, however, was raided in 2012 by the police department’s Gang Suppression Unit for being suspicious of producing methamphetamine, a highly addictive and illicit narcotic that can cause euphoria and stimulating effects. Although he was never charged, the research facility was closed. 

McAfee was also declared a “person of interest” in the death of his neighbor, Gregory Faull, in 2012. His way of life irritated Faull. McAfee denied any participation in the murder and went into hiding. He was apprehended in Guatemala after being on the run for about a month. McAfee staged two heart attacks as he was going to be deported back to Belize.

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How Did The Most Recent Twist In His Life Occur?

McAfee was arrested at Barcelona’s international airport on his way to Istanbul in October 2020. He was apprehended by Spanish officials at the request of the United States administration. In the US state of Tennessee, he was accused of evading taxes for four years and failing to register his income from cryptocurrency, consultancy work, and selling his life rights in the form of a documentary. McAfee claimed that any attempt to extradite him to the United States was political. John McAfee was discovered dead after Spain’s top court ordered his extradition to the United States.

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