Security pioneer McAfee appoints blockchain expert to improve digital currency and blockchain security

Security pioneer John McAffee has added two bitcoin pioneers to his new company’s advisory board, further strengthening the firm’s efforts to improve the security of the digital currency.

As part of MGT Capital’s investment strategy, McAfee yesterday launched the firm’s Cryptosecurity Advisory Board, appointing Bitcoin angel investor Roger Ver as the board’s chairman. Today, MGT announced that ShapeShift founder and CEO Erik Voorhees has joined their board.

Some banks and financial institutions are already adopting blockchain because of its promise to increase transparency and efficiency, but McAfee said MGT's Crypto Security Advisory Committee and a new department to be launched soon will work to make the technology more secure.

McAfee said:

“From a hacker’s perspective, blockchain is extremely insecure. And security is my specialty.”

McAfee said he believed blockchain technology created a more secure way to verify transactions, but recent hacks of cryptocurrency exchange ShapeShift and the high-profile Mt Gox case showed that businesses built on blockchains were still vulnerable to attack.

He said:

"I freak out when I see people putting their wallets into their smartphones. If you give me their phone, I can take all the money out of their wallet in 10 minutes."

In May this year, McAfee was appointed chairman and CEO of MGT Capital Investments, and the company's stock soared 1,000% in a short period of time. MGT was formerly a fantasy sports company. After McAfee joined, the company was renamed John McAfee Global Technologies Co., Ltd.

Currently, the company's stock price is $2.63 per share, with a market value of $59 million.

Rebuilding a new company

The move has already sparked speculation in the cryptocurrency and blockchain industries given McAfee’s history with new technologies.

John McAffee is best known for founding McAfee Associates, a company that has become synonymous with cybersecurity, in 1987. In 2010, Intel acquired the company for $7.6 billion.

However, members are currently unclear about how the new advisory board will assist MGT in positioning itself in the blockchain field.

Voorhis said he hopes the MGT Cryptocurrency Advisory Committee and affiliates will be able to make several calls each year. According to Voorhis, McAfee’s arguments correctly intertwine cybersecurity and cryptocurrency.

He said:

“Blockchain assets change the nature of cybersecurity from protecting personal information (less important today) to protecting digital property (increasingly important). I’m excited to see what McAfee is working on and excited to contribute to this project.”

Erik Voorhees, founder and CEO of ShapeShift

But the cryptocurrency advisory board is just one part of what McAfee described as an upcoming cryptocurrency division that will work alongside new divisions that will focus on the military and other forms of security.

In addition to the Cryptocurrency Advisory Board, MGT also announced the establishment of a Hacker Advisory Board to guide the development of technology aimed at preventing cyber threats, with founding members including Chris Roberts, Bryce Case and Alexander Heid.

McAfee said:

"I have identified 12 super high-tech products that we will integrate into MGT over the next six months."

McAfee has proven to be an eclectic person, based on his recent project choices.

Earlier this year, McAfee was also involved in the Libertarian Party's presidential candidate campaign before he was named chairman and CEO of MGT Capital.