Adrian Johnson
TLDR:
– The U.S. government has banned the sale of Kaspersky cybersecurity software, effective July 20th.
– The ban is due to concerns about the loyalty of Kaspersky Software, a cybersecurity firm headquartered in Russia.
A long-simmering suspicion about the loyalty of Kaspersky Software, a cybersecurity firm headquartered in Russia, came to a head this week when the U.S. government banned the sale of the company’s software, effective July 20th, to both companies and individual consumers. The ban was accompanied by sanctions on 12 senior leaders of Kaspersky. The U.S. Treasury Department implemented these measures under a 2021 executive order that allows sanctions in response to direct threats to U.S. national security from Russia. Despite Kaspersky denying any collusion with the Russian government, concerns remain about data access due to Russian laws. This event signifies a shift in viewing cybersecurity as an extension of national security, requiring national leaders to act on these concerns. The ban raises questions about the allegiances of companies run by executives from specific countries and the implications of geopolitical conflicts on IT environments and cybersecurity strategies.
