(Moscow) Russian cybersecurity giant Kaspersky announced Tuesday that it is beginning its withdrawal from the United States, following the adoption of sanctions last month against the company’s executives and the banning of its software.
“Starting July 20, 2024, Kaspersky will gradually wind down its operations in the United States and eliminate positions based in the country. This decision and process follows the final decision by the U.S. Department of Commerce prohibiting the sale and distribution of Kaspersky products in the United States,” the company said in a statement sent to AFP.
“The company has carefully considered and evaluated the implications of the U.S. legal requirements and has made this sad and difficult decision as the prospects of doing business in that country are no longer viable,” it added.
On June 20, the Commerce Department announced that the Russian giant would no longer be allowed to sell its software in the United States or to American citizens elsewhere in the world or to provide updates to software already in use.
Kaspersky has until September 29 to carry out certain activities, giving its customers time to find an alternative.
Washington justified this measure by criticizing the company for its closeness to the Russian authorities, an old accusation that Kaspersky, one of the rare Russian IT companies to have conquered abroad, has always defended itself against.
In the wake of the software ban, the United States also sanctioned 12 executives of the company.
The company, which claims some 400 million users, was founded in 1997 by Yevgeny Kaspersky, who before going into business had studied computer science and cryptography at the KGB academy before working for the Russian Defense Ministry.
Kaspersky had tried to reassure by transferring all of its Western customers’ data to its data center in Zurich, Switzerland, in 2020.