See that screenshot above? That's the nerve center for Operation Shady Rat, the newly notorious cyber attack possibly set up by some government-sponsored Chinese hackers. I just spent the last 30 minutes exploring it and managed not to get cyber-annihilated. No big deal. (Seriously, it wasn't.)

If you put something on a computer these days, you're basically "Here, hackers, have this." But who's doing all the hacking? The world's biggest hack attack has been revealed, and it's probably China. Welcome to... "Operation Shady Rat."

John McAfee suspected Fast Company would portray him as a con artist. Which is why it's so bizarre the software kingpin proceeded to act like one, publicly blabbing about the people he's misled and the fun he had doing so.

John McAfee is a tricky one. The software mogul said he squandered his anti-virus fortune on worthless bonds and real estate. But what if he got his nephew killed and is trying to escape the consequences?

Crystal says that a 23-year-old man raped her, and she's saying it on YouTube. Why not go to a shelter or a counseling center like girls are supposed to? Crystal isn't just doing teen-bedroom confessional; she's asking YouTube viewers to call the Florida state attorney's office to request that her case be prosecuted. But does talking about rape on YouTube do anything that the courts can't? The full video, after the jump:

A reader writes in to let us know that while using McAfee's online chat system for customer support, the company representative not only didn't help, but cut off the chat rather than admit they had no idea what they were talking about. I turned up links to just what the customer was looking for — information about a piece of McAfee hardware — with a quick search of Google. Here at Valleywag, we aim to please.

Christmas is slow for journalists. There are a few more end-of-year lists to run, most of which were written weeks ago, and some holiday shopping numbers to report. Which is why the Sydney Morning Herald's Conrad Walters must have been thrilled to see security software firm McAfee's latest study on the growing threat of cyberwar between nations. It's not every day a hack gets to paint a picture of gloom and doom this lurid.

• McAfee's president and chairman-CEO resign after the company finds a $100 to $150 million discrepancy in the accounting of its stock options grants. McAfee notes that CEO George Samenuk is retiring, while the board fired president Kevin Weiss. [NY Times]

We guess McAfee is trying to show the horror of exposed identity. Still — is this, or is this not, the most grotesque ad for a virus scanner you've ever seen? It's practically a Dadaist artwork.

Grr, another article ending in "Financial terms of the deal were not disclosed." Information wants to be free! (Or at least available on an ad-supported blog!) So from now on, when you know the numbers behind a deal, send 'em to tips@valleywag.com or send an AIM to "HeyValleywag". We'll reveal the price here in a new feature, "Under the Table."