The United States government has decided to block all its Federal Agencies from buying software developed by the Kaspersky Labs, which is based in Russia, due to a possible association with intelligence agencies in Russia apart from collaboration with local intelligence services. The news was confirmed by the General Services Administration that Kaspersky is no longer on the list of government-approved software vendors. This primarily means that all federal agencies, as well as state departments in The United States, are not allowed to buy any kind of software from the Russia-based security vendor.
Kaspersky Security gets banned in the U.S.
The GSA was quoted saying that the agency's priority is making sure that the security of the networks and government systems in the U.S. is not compromised. This is not the first time that concerns over Kaspersky's links with the Russia have surfaced. Bloomberg News recently shared that the ties Kaspersky had with Russia were much stronger than it was initially suspected. It is believed that the company has a very good work relationship with the FSB, an intelligence agency in Russia.
Kaspersky denies inappropriate associations with any government
The security firm, on the other hand, has denied all the allegations made in the Bloomberg Businessweek article.
In a press statement, the security software developer stated that irrespective of how the facts were diluted, the company or its executives, did not have any unsuitable ties with any country's government. The firm also clarified its stance on with regards to the accusations, addressing each concern.
Kaspersky asserted that it only works in tandem with agencies to fight against cyber crime.
Bloomberg has claimed that the publication has obtained several internal emails that can be served as evidence of a "much closer working relationship" between FSB and Kaspersky. However, the Russian cyber security firm maintains that the internal communication was "misinterpreted or manipulated" by the U.S. based media house.
The security company stated that it has been very vocal and transparent about the assistance it extends toward law enforcement agencies from all over the world in a bid to fight cyber threats and other cyber crime related matters. Amongst these countries that Kaspersky helps time and again, including Russia. It also noted that, while working on any official Russian cyber crime investigation, the firm abides the country's law and provides them with tech expertise to aid in nabbing the criminals effectively. The security firm also maintained that the company was being "unjustly accused" sans any concrete evidence.
