The General Services Administration had validated that Kaspersky is no longer an approved software vendor. This means that federal agencies and state departments are not permitted to purchase software products from Kaspersky.
Here’s what General Services Administration said:
“GSA’s priorities are to ensure the integrity and security of US government systems and networks and evaluate products and services available on our contracts using supply chain risk management processes” Well, this is not the first time Kaspersky had raised concerns regarding the collaboration with Russia. Recently, reports from US-based Media, including Bloomberg News suggest that the security firm had powerful ties than initially thought with Russian intelligence agency FSB. On the other hand, the security firm, Kaspersky have denied all the allegations, it had explained on its website that the company doesn’t have any ‘inappropriate’ ties with any government. Kaspersky also added that the company only operates with agencies to fight cyber crime. Bloomberg claimed that they have captured internal company emails that served as proof of a ‘much closer working relationship’ between the security firm Kaspersky and FSB. However, Kaspersky said the communication was ‘misinterpreted or manipulated’.
Here’s what Kaspersky firm said:
“Kaspersky Lab is very public about the fact that it assists law enforcement agencies around the world with fighting cyber threats, including those in Russia, by providing cyber security expertise on malware and cyberattacks.” “When assisting in official Russian cybercrime investigations, in accordance with Russian law, we only provide technical expertise throughout the investigation to help them catch cybercriminals. Concerning raids and physically catching cybercriminals, Kaspersky Lab might ride along to examine any digital evidence found, but that is the extent of our participation, as we do not track hackers’ locations. Kaspersky Lab doesn’t provide any government agencies, nor other parties, with information on location of people and doesn’t gather ‘identifying data from customers’ computers’ because it is technically impossible.” Kaspersky had also declined all the charges by claiming that it is being “unjustly accused without any hard evidence” So, what do you think about this? Share your views in the comment box below.
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