Why the US government is moving to ban this Russian software company
WASHINGTON has declared that federal agencies must identify a popular brand of security software on their networks and prepare a plan to remove it because of its creator’s potential ties to Russia’s cyberespionage activities.
Kaspersky Lab, the software company, is used by at least a half- dozen federal civilian agencies to some degree, according to US officials.
There may also be other agencies in which the software is being used without the knowledge of that agency’s chief information security officer. However, officials have not publicly disclosed which agencies exactly are using Kaspersky products.
Here’s what you need to know about the software company: Q: What is Kaspersky? A: Kaspersky is a Russian software company founded in 1997 by Eugene Kaspersky, a decade after he had graduated from a KGB- supported cryptography school and worked in Russian military intelligence. Today, most of its business comes from outside Russia, and the company boasts 400 million users and 270,000 corporate clients world-wide.
Kaspersky offers software that can detect malicious computer viruses or help a company keep track of cybersecurity data being gathered on different portions of its network. Q: What did the US government actually do? A: The acting homeland security secretary, Elaine Duke, issued an order last Wednesday that federal civilian agencies identify Kaspersky software on their networks. After 90 days, unless otherwise directed, they must remove the software, on the grounds that the company has connections to the Russian government and its software poses a security risk. The order does not apply to military networks. However, the Defence Department and intelligence agencies generally do not use Kaspersky software and have not for a number of years.
Nonetheless, Congress is considering legislation that would implement a governmentwide ban on Kaspersky products.
In July, the General Services Administration, the agency in charge of government purchasing, removed Kaspersky from its list of approved vendors. In doing so, the GSA suggested a vulnerability exists with Kaspersky products that could give the Kremlin surreptitious access to the systems using the software. Q: What is the US government worried about? A: The US government is worried that Kaspersky products provide a covert means of spying on American networks. Q: What has Kaspersky said? A: Kaspersky adamantly denies it is spying on behalf of Moscow.
In a statement Wednesday, it said it “doesn’t have inappropriate ties with any government” and that “no credible evidence has been presented publicly by anyone or any organisation to back up the false allegations made against the company.”
“Kaspersky Lab has never helped, nor will help, any government in the world with its cyberespionage or offensive cyber efforts, and it’s disconcerting that a private company can be considered guilty until proven innocent, due to geopolitical issues,” the company said in a statement. — WP-Bloobmerg