Russian antivirus company Kaspersky Labs is leaving the US because the Biden administration banned its software. Kaspersky said it had to make the “sad and difficult decision” to go because it can’t do business in the US anymore.
Government’s Concerns about Kaspersky
Commerce Secretary Gina Raimondo said Russia’s control over Kaspersky was a big risk to US infrastructure and services. Kaspersky has been in the US for 20 years and denied these claims.
Closing US Operations
Starting July 20, 2024, Kaspersky will shut down its US operations and remove US-based jobs. The company’s US website has already stopped selling its products, with a message saying they are “unavailable for US customers.”
Details of the Ban
The US government banned Kaspersky products due to concerns about Russia’s ability to misuse Americans’ personal information. The Commerce Department said Kaspersky can no longer sell its software in the US or provide updates to existing software.
Ban Enforcement
The ban was enforced using rules made during the Trump administration to limit transactions between US companies and tech firms from adversarial countries like Russia and China. The ban stopped software updates, resales, and licensing of Kaspersky products from September 29. New business was to be restricted within 30 days of the announcement. Those who violate the ban will face fines.
Kaspersky’s Response
Kaspersky, based in Moscow, has offices in 31 countries and serves over 400 million users and 270,000 corporate clients in more than 200 countries. Kaspersky said it would use all legal options to fight the ban and denied doing anything that threatened US security.
I don’t think the title of your article matches the content lol. Just kidding, mainly because I had some doubts after reading the article.