- Apr 5, 2014
- 6,001
MOSCOW/TORONTO: Moscow-based Kaspersky Lab plans to open a datacentre in Switzerland to address Western government concerns that Russia exploits its anti-virus software to spy on customers, according to internal documents seen by Reuters.
Kaspersky is setting up the centre in response to actions in the United States, Britain and Lithuania last year to stop using the company's products, according to the documents, which were confirmed by a person with direct knowledge of the matter.
The action is the latest effort by Kaspersky, a global leader in anti-virus software, to parry accusations by the US government and others that the company spies on customers at the behest of Russian intelligence. The US last year ordered civilian government agencies to remove the Kaspersky software from their networks.
Kaspersky has strongly rejected the accusations and filed a lawsuit against the US ban.
The US allegations were the "trigger" for setting up the Swiss datacentre, said the person familiar with Kapersky's Switzerland plans, but not the only factor.
"The world is changing," they said, speaking on condition of anonymity when discussing internal company business. "There is more balkanisation and protectionism."
The person declined to provide further details on the new project, but added: "This is not just a PR stunt. We are really changing our R&D infrastructure."
A Kaspersky spokeswoman declined to comment on the documents reviewed by Reuters.
In a statement, Kaspersky Lab said: "To further deliver on the promises of our Global Transparency Initiative, we are finalising plans for the opening of the company's first transparency centre this year, which will be located in Europe."
"We understand that during a time of geopolitical tension, mirrored by an increasingly complex cyber-threat landscape, people may have questions and we want to address them."
Kaspersky Lab launched a campaign in October to dispel concerns about possible collusion with the Russian government by promising to let independent experts scrutinise its software for security vulnerabilities and "back doors" that governments could exploit to spy on its customers.
The company also said at the time that it would open "transparency centres" in Asia, Europe and the United States but did not provide details. The new Swiss facility is dubbed the Swiss Transparency Centre, according to the documents.
Kaspersky is setting up the centre in response to actions in the United States, Britain and Lithuania last year to stop using the company's products, according to the documents, which were confirmed by a person with direct knowledge of the matter.
The action is the latest effort by Kaspersky, a global leader in anti-virus software, to parry accusations by the US government and others that the company spies on customers at the behest of Russian intelligence. The US last year ordered civilian government agencies to remove the Kaspersky software from their networks.
Kaspersky has strongly rejected the accusations and filed a lawsuit against the US ban.
The US allegations were the "trigger" for setting up the Swiss datacentre, said the person familiar with Kapersky's Switzerland plans, but not the only factor.
"The world is changing," they said, speaking on condition of anonymity when discussing internal company business. "There is more balkanisation and protectionism."
The person declined to provide further details on the new project, but added: "This is not just a PR stunt. We are really changing our R&D infrastructure."
A Kaspersky spokeswoman declined to comment on the documents reviewed by Reuters.
In a statement, Kaspersky Lab said: "To further deliver on the promises of our Global Transparency Initiative, we are finalising plans for the opening of the company's first transparency centre this year, which will be located in Europe."
"We understand that during a time of geopolitical tension, mirrored by an increasingly complex cyber-threat landscape, people may have questions and we want to address them."
Kaspersky Lab launched a campaign in October to dispel concerns about possible collusion with the Russian government by promising to let independent experts scrutinise its software for security vulnerabilities and "back doors" that governments could exploit to spy on its customers.
The company also said at the time that it would open "transparency centres" in Asia, Europe and the United States but did not provide details. The new Swiss facility is dubbed the Swiss Transparency Centre, according to the documents.
