Russia antivirus firm Kaspersky quits US after ban

Russian antivirus giant Kaspersky Labs has announced its departure from the US market. The company stated it made the 'sad and difficult decision' to leave because business opportunities in the country are no longer viable. This decision follows comments from Commerce Secretary Gina Raimondo, who said last month that Moscow's influence over Kaspersky posed a significant risk to US infrastructure and services. Kaspersky, which has operated in the US for two decades, denies these allegations. Starting from July 20, 2024, Kaspersky will gradually wind down its US operations and eliminate US-based positions. The company's US website has already stopped selling its antivirus and cybersecurity tools, with a message stating 'purchase is unavailable for US customers. ' The announcement came after the US government banned the sale and distribution of Kaspersky products. Secretary Raimondo said the US was compelled to take action due to Russia's 'capacity and. intent to collect and weaponize the personal information of Americans. ' The Commerce Department stated that Kaspersky would no longer be able to sell its software within the United States or provide updates to software already in use. The ruling uses broad powers created by the Trump administration to ban or restrict transactions between US firms and technology companies from 'foreign adversary' nations like Russia and China. This effectively bars downloads of software updates, resales, and licensing of Kaspersky products from September 29, while new business is to be restricted within 30 days of the announcement. Sellers and resellers who violate the restrictions will face fines from the Commerce Department. According to the Commerce Department, the Moscow-headquartered multinational company has offices in 31 countries around the world, servicing more than 400 million users and 270,000 corporate clients in over 200 countries. Kaspersky has stated it intends to pursue 'all legally available options' to fight the ban and denies engaging in any activity that threatens US security.