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John McAfee's (insane, NSFW) tips for uninstalling McAfee

McAfee mocks himself and his antivirus software mercilessly in a new viral video.

Eric Mack Contributing Editor
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Eric Mack
2 min read
"Eccentric millionaire" John McAfee finally reveals his strategy for removing his namesake antivirus software. Screenshot by Eric Mack/CNET

In the past year, estranged antivirus kingpin John McAfee has been accused of being many things -- madman, drug addict, and murderer, just to name a few -- but as the video below proves, you certainly can't accuse him of taking himself too seriously.

In the very NSFW four-minute clip, McAfee slams the software he created (but has had not contact with for more than a decade, as he points out) for its tendency to update itself at the most inconvenient times and ultimately offers an, uh, unorthodox method for uninstalling it.

But the real target of the satirical send-up isn't McAfee Anti-Virus, it's John McAfee himself. Or at least McAfee as portrayed in the media over the past several months since the millionaire went on the run after his neighbor in Belize was found dead and McAfee was sought for questioning by local authorities.

In the (at least semi-professionally) produced video, McAfee is seen with lots of guns, scantily clad women (dancers from Portland's Club Exotica, according to the credits), and doing bath salts. Look closely and you'll also see him using a hundred dollar bill and a Hello Kitty lighter to light a smoke. If that's not evidence enough of McAfee's refined comic sensibilities, perhaps his line about hiring a Bangkok prostitute to do his taxes will convince you.

McAfee seems to be making a half-hearted attempt at positioning himself as some sort of subversive public personality. The video was posted to his online McAfeezine, and there's also an authorized book and movie about McAfee's life in the works, but the frequency of updates to his online presence seems a bit erratic. Then again, perhaps that approach is just part of his branding: McAfee has now fully embraced the title of "eccentric millionaire" on his Twitter bio and elsewhere.

Watch the video below from a safe location and let us know what you think in the comments.