Russian cybersecurity giant Kaspersky Lab is laying off dozens of employees and withdrawing from the U.S. market after receiving a U.S. government order in June banning the sale of its software due to security risks.
Kaspersky said it would “gradually wind down” its US operations from July 20, when the ban comes into effect, adding that its US operations were “no longer viable.”
Independent journalist Kim Zetter first broke the news on Monday that the company was closing its US operations. Zetter said the layoffs would affect “fewer than 50” employees in the US. CNN also reported the same statement.
Kaspersky initially planned to appeal the ban, saying at the time the ban was announced that it was “not engaged in activities that threaten U.S. national security” and that it would “pursue all legally available options to maintain our current operations and relationships.”
Kaspersky Lab spokesman Sawyer Van Horn did not respond to a request for comment, and it is unclear whether the company's public relations staff will be affected by the cuts.
In June, the U.S. Department of Commerce announced it would “for the first time” ban Kaspersky Lab's antivirus software from being sold to U.S. consumers, citing heightened security and privacy risks because the company is headquartered in Russia.
“Russia has demonstrated the capability, and even the intent, to use Russian companies like Kaspersky to collect and weaponize Americans' personal information,” then-Secretary of Commerce Gina Raimondo said in a conference call with reporters.
Once the ban takes effect, Kaspersky Lab will no longer be able to sell software to US consumers directly or through US-based resellers of Kaspersky Lab software. Some resellers have criticized the ban, saying it will affect their business. After September 29, Kaspersky Lab will no longer be able to push software or security updates to US customers, resulting in reduced protection from their antivirus software.
The Commerce Department said it implemented the ban in a phased approach to allow U.S. consumers to find alternatives to Kaspersky Lab software.
The Treasury Department also imposed sanctions on several senior Kaspersky Lab executives, effectively banning U.S. customers from paying the company for software or doing business with future companies run by the executives. CEO Eugene Kaspersky was not sanctioned, according to the Treasury Department.
The U.S. government has taken action against Kaspersky Lab under both the Trump and Biden administrations: In 2017, the Trump administration banned the use of Kaspersky Lab software across the federal government after Russian government hackers stole classified U.S. documents earlier that year from an intelligence contractor's home computer, which was running Kaspersky Lab software at the time.
By their very nature, antivirus products typically have extensive, if not complete, access to the device on which they are installed in order to identify malicious cyberthreats.
As of Tuesday, TechCrunch found that Kaspersky Lab products were not available for purchase on its U.S. website, which reads, “Due to regulatory compliance, Kaspersky Lab products cannot be purchased from your country.”