Kaspersky Sues US Government over Federal Software Ban
Posted by: Timothy Tibbetts on 12/19/2017 12:38 AM
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Kaspersky Labs is suing the US government for banning its software citing that they didn't provide "due process" and unfairly tarnished the company's reputation.
We totally agree and here are our thoughts on why.
Common sense dictates that the government use US-based antivirus or even make their own. The blaming of Kaspersky because a government employee (contractor) took a laptop home is the fault of the contractor, not the antivirus. Somehow we don't ever hear them discussing the fact that someone can leave with any electronic device without it being checked. Doesn't security dictate making sure that sensitive data doesn't leave a government facility? We'd like to think so. Riding the wave of allegations that Russia interfered with our elections made it easy for the US to blame the antivirus software and not the real problem, a glaring gap in security that's as old as time - walking out the door.
Engadget reports that Kaspersky, in an open letter, claimed that officials acted on "subjective, non-technical" sources of information, including "uncorroborated" reports, and that the efforts at reciprocity were largely one-sided. Kaspersky made "good faith" attempts at addressing concerns, according to the letter, but there was reportedly no significant opportunity to be heard before the DHS issued its directive.
We maintain that Kaspersky and a few other antivirus software programs are always consistently at the top of the best antivirus software programs available. They also provide dozens of free removal tools for the consumer that can remove spyware, ransomware, and other stubborn problems.
This should be a compelling case. Kaspersky has offered independent reviews of its source code to prove it's not a Russian government mole, but officials have said it wouldn't be enough to change their mind. But, we still say they're playing the game, ignoring the elephant in the room.
We totally agree and here are our thoughts on why. Common sense dictates that the government use US-based antivirus or even make their own. The blaming of Kaspersky because a government employee (contractor) took a laptop home is the fault of the contractor, not the antivirus. Somehow we don't ever hear them discussing the fact that someone can leave with any electronic device without it being checked. Doesn't security dictate making sure that sensitive data doesn't leave a government facility? We'd like to think so. Riding the wave of allegations that Russia interfered with our elections made it easy for the US to blame the antivirus software and not the real problem, a glaring gap in security that's as old as time - walking out the door.
Engadget reports that Kaspersky, in an open letter, claimed that officials acted on "subjective, non-technical" sources of information, including "uncorroborated" reports, and that the efforts at reciprocity were largely one-sided. Kaspersky made "good faith" attempts at addressing concerns, according to the letter, but there was reportedly no significant opportunity to be heard before the DHS issued its directive.
We maintain that Kaspersky and a few other antivirus software programs are always consistently at the top of the best antivirus software programs available. They also provide dozens of free removal tools for the consumer that can remove spyware, ransomware, and other stubborn problems.
This should be a compelling case. Kaspersky has offered independent reviews of its source code to prove it's not a Russian government mole, but officials have said it wouldn't be enough to change their mind. But, we still say they're playing the game, ignoring the elephant in the room.
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