Impact On Kaspersky’s Addition To US’s List Of National Security Threats

According to Bloomberg, the US Federal Communications Commission has added Russian cybersecurity firm Kaspersky Lab to its list of companies that pose an “unacceptable risk to US national security.” This is the first time a Russian firm has been added to the list, which is dominated by Chinese firms such as Huawei and ZTE. On Friday, the FCC added China Telecom and China Mobile International USA to its list, in addition to Kaspersky.

Jessica Rosenworcel, Chairwoman of the Federal Communications Commission, issued a statement. ” The inclusion of China Mobile and China Telecom, as well as Kaspersky Labs, will assist in protecting our networks from threats presented by Chinese and Russian state-sponsored enterprises aiming to engage in espionage and undermine America’s interests.”

What Will Be The Impact Of This Action By FCC?

Businesses in the United States are prohibited from purchasing items or services from the companies on the list using federal subsidies provided by the Federal Communications Commission’s Universal Service Fund. In addition, many other countries might follow the same steps and this will create a serious impact on the minds of people across the globe.

Because the companies are on the “covered list,” money from the FCC’s $8 billion yearly Universal Service Fund cannot be utilized to buy or maintain their products.

Telecommunications for rural areas, low-income consumers, and infrastructures like schools, libraries, and hospitals are also supported by the fund. The major impact can be a decline in revenue of Kaspersky until FCC removes it from the list of national security threats.

How Has Kaspersky Responded To This?

In a statement on its website, Kaspersky said the FCC’s decision was “based on political considerations” in light of Russia’s invasion of Ukraine, and that the business “remains ready to engage with US government authorities to address the FCC’s and any other regulatory agency’s concerns.” The action was “unsubstantiated” and “reactive to the geopolitical context rather than a thorough examination of Kaspersky’s products and services,” according to the company.

However, it assured its customers that there will be no impact on its products and services and will continue to serve them as it has been doing for the past several years.

Other Notable Controversies Revolving Around Kaspersky

• Russian intelligence allegedly used Kaspersky antivirus software to obtain confidential documents from the National Security Agency in 2017, according to an allegation rejected by the Moscow-based corporation. The corporation admits that it retrieved and analyzed the files, but claims that there was a legitimate cause for doing so, which was the presence of a pirated version of Microsoft Office on the machine. It’s a credible explanation for how the files were returned to Moscow without the corporation collaborating with or being compromised by the Russian government but does strike a doubt.

• Furthermore,in 2017, President Donald Trump signed legislation prohibiting the use of Kaspersky Lab within the United States government into law on Tuesday, concluding a months-long push to remove the Moscow-based antivirus business from federal agencies amid concerns it was vulnerable to Kremlin manipulation. Senator Jeanne Shaheen, a Democrat, went on to say that the company’s software posed a “grave risk” to US national security.

Best Alternative To Kaspersky Antivirus – Systweak Antivirus

The most recommended method of keeping your system secure is to use a real-time antivirus that protects your PC at all times. Systweak Antivirus protects your computer in real-time against all forms of malicious threats. It also includes the StopAllAds browser plugin, which filters unwanted advertisements and safeguards the computer by preventing malware and other types of malicious software from being downloaded or accessed. Systweak Antivirus guards your computer against exploits around the clock, 365 days a year. It boosts the computer’s present performance by acting as a one-stop-shop for all security needs.

It’s quite simple to use: This program has a user interface that is simple to use and can be used by everyone in your household.

Security in real-time: One of the few antivirus systems that can detect potential threats/apps based on how they behave on your computer is Systweak Antivirus.

Light-Weight: Software that consumes the fewest system resources is considered the best because it does not squander your CPU resources.

Ad Blocker: This tool allows you to surf the web while blocking adverts with an ad blocker.

Startup apps can be removed: Users can turn off components that slow down the computer’s startup time.

Your Thoughts On Impact On Kaspersky’s Addition To US’s List Of National Security Threats

Image Courtesy: YouTube

President Joe Biden has recently issued a warning about Russian cyberattacks on American firms. This has been stated by the President himself at a time when the world is witnessing the consequences of the Russia-Ukraine war. Kaspersky does have a stained record of capturing confidential documents and who knows if Kaspersky can be one of the tools that would be used to carry out those cyber attacks that have been forewarned by the US government.

The decision to continue using Kaspersky is something one has to individually decide upon after analyzing and considering all the facts and figures available.

Follow us on social media – Facebook, Instagram, and YouTube. For any queries or suggestions, please let us know in the comments section below. We would love to get back to you with a solution. We regularly post tips and tricks, along with answers to common issues related to technology.