Is Kaspersky a "Red" Herring ?

U.S. Judge Rejects Kaspersky Suit Against Govt Ban on its Products
May 30, 2018
https://www.securityweek.com/us-judge-rejects-kaspersky-suit-against-govt-ban-its-products

 

So what about a product like Zone Alarm - a company that uses Kaspersky technology? What other antivirus/ security programs use Kaspersky tech?

 

"...The EU claims Kaspersky wares 'confirmed as malicious'

Motion passed to eject Russian software from bloc institutions...

The European action calls for a review of all equipment that might be using Kaspersky's products – not just desktop or server installations – and takes things a step further by unambiguously stating that the software has been "confirmed as malicious"..."

https://www.theregister.co.uk/2018/06/13/eu_kaspersky_cyber_defence_motion/

"[EU] Parliament demands EU institutions ban Kaspersky Lab cybersecurity products...

https://www.euractiv.com/section/cy...ons-ban-kaspersky-lab-cybersecurity-products/

 

"Kaspersky Lab breaks off work with European law enforcement agencies

Kaspersky Lab has suspended its work with European law enforcement agencies, including Europol, following the European Parliament’s adoption of a resolution calling for greater protections against malicious cyber attacks from Russia, China, and North Korea. The company objects to the resolution’s claim that Kaspersky Lab’s software is potentially dangerous, saying it won’t work with European police agencies until it gets a clear, official explanation for the allegations..."

https://meduza.io/en/news/2018/06/1...f-work-with-european-law-enforcement-agencies

 

Sir, you've been using Kaspersky Lab antivirus. Please come with us, sir

https://www.theregister.co.uk/2018/06/15/us_gov_ban_on_kaspersky_lab/

 

key word : Potential.

No proof yet of any nefarious 'hidden' code, back doors, malware, booby traps, etc. The sheep ion Govt. are running scared from a guard dog that has not ever as yet turned on them. It's a waste of time & money for no gain but sanctioning the wrong people and will have no effect on the real big bad wolf, Butcher Vlad the Impaler Putin. It just makes him stronger for 'defending' Muther Rooshia against unjustified external attacks by the evil west.

 

IMO, it's just a beginning and more countries will start to forbid government usage of software and hardware produced in other countries.
Even Russia was considering to remove Windows from government computers. They were afraid that MS collects data that could be exposed to US government.
I think we'll see more of this in future.

 

Kaspersky’s 'transparency tour'

"Kaspersky Labs is on a "Transparency Tour" in which the company attempts to persuade us all that it is not a danger to anyone except cyber-criminals and will soon open a "transparency lab" to prove it...

...[Kaspersky] then advanced a theory that during their fearless mission to hunt down malware regardless of its source, Kaspersky researchers discovered, defused and exposed cyber weapons developed by several nation states...

But the US was angry at having its efforts stymied, so retaliated by smearing Kaspersky..."

https://www.theregister.co.uk/2018/06/26/kaspersky_transparency_tour/

 

Banning Software Isn’t the Route to Cybersecurity, Nuclear Security Agency Official Says
June 28, 2018
https://www.nextgov.com/cybersecuri...ty-agency-official-says/149385/?oref=rf-river

 

I would have though by now their own hackers would have removed most of that stuff.

 

I am at the point where I dont believe anything they say or have said about Russia or Putin anymore. I think this obviously unjustified attack on Kaspersky demonstrates something that is nothing new.

 

Guys- There is not now nor ever was anything suspicious or malicious in the K code, and spying has nothing to do with the move away from K in the Governmental and Critical Infrastructure areas. There are things that never should be public, but understand that you should take the K "Transparency Tour" as an insult to your intelligence.

One must differentiate things that are safe for Peasants like us to use from things that are safe for Defense C&C's and Electric Grids to use.

 

Pentagon Creates 'Do Not Buy' List of Chinese and Russian Software Providers
July 30, 2018
https://www.bleepingcomputer.com/ne...st-of-chinese-and-russian-software-providers/

 

Global Transparency Initiative status update

https://www.kaspersky.com/blog/transparency-status-updates

 

Kaspersky has responded to this dirt with admirable restrain.

 

>trusting anti-malware to protect you from malware in 2018
>using Windows in 2018, and thinking that it is safe as long as you are using anti malware software

Windows is so vulnerable to malware , it almost makes you assume that Windows wasn't intentionally designed to be vulnerable ...so vulnerable ...for a conspiratorial reason.

Literally the only use for Windows is PC gaming since Steam has a monopoly on PC gaming, and the only OS that can run 95% of PC games is Windows.

 

If you keep Windows and vulnerable software updated and are not click happy, it's actually pretty hard to get infected.

 

My problem with KIS is Eugene Kaspersky and his abhorrent views on internet privacy.
This tells me everything I need to know to keep me away from any of his products - including KIS.

How soon we forget....This was almost TEN years ago!
https://www.computerworld.com/artic.../eugene-kaspersky-wants-no-net-anonymity.html

https://www.theregister.co.uk/2009/10/16/kaspersky_rebukes_net_anonymity/

Try this from PC World in 2008(!)

PCW: What do you think about the links between cyber-crime groups and organized crime? Are they joining forces?

E.K: I don't think this is true. The cyber-criminals don't have strong links with organized crime groups. They may have some links, but I don't think it's fair to say that all cyber criminals are part of the real Mafia, or other organized crime groups. The mentality of a cyber-criminal is very different from a real-world crook, and it's not true that all cyber-criminals would commit physical crimes, or think like people who are used to more violent lifestyles.

• 
  PCW: What can we do to fix some of the problems with malware on the Internet?
  
  E.K: The Internet was never designed with security in mind. If I was God, and wanted to fix the Internet, I would start by ensuring that every user has a sort of internet passport: basically, a means of verifying identity, just like in the real world, with driver's licenses and passports and so on. The second problem is one of jurisdiction. The Internet has no borders, and neither do the criminals who operate on the Internet. However, law enforcement agencies have jurisdictional limits, and are unable to conduct investigations across the globe. I feel we need an international agency to combat this problem, something like an Interpol for the Internet.
  
  PCW: Won't your suggestion of Internet Passports remove the anonymity from online browsing, thus causing problems for people who may be operating in countries that are not friendly to their views, and so on?
  
  E.K: There is no such thing as anonymity on the Internet, for the average user. It is relatively easy to identify the casual surfer from his IP address and the ISP's logs. Criminals, on the other hand, are professionals who know how to hide their tracks. A passport would be beneficial to law-abiding users, and would make it that much more difficult for cyber-criminals to hide.
  https://www.pcworld.com/article/155545/kaspersky_talks.html
  
  No Kaspersky products for me.

 

I believe that Kaspersky is as (or more) secure and reliable as any other software with the same functions. I am of the opinion that they are particularly being attacked by certain governments, because Kasperksky does not play ball with their demands. This makes me trust Kaspersky more actually.

 

I hope you didn't confuse my post about Eugene Kaspersky with the current Russia questions. The sole purpose of my post was to point out Mr. Kaspersky's views that users of the internet should be forced to have an "Internet Passport" which he admits would end any kind of privacy or attempts at anonymity. He supports blocking TOR, for example. He described, way back in 2008 and many times since (see my links), that the passport would serve like a drivers license. THEN, he wants a single sole worldwide authority to "police" the internet (again, see my links). He basically wants an Internet Police State. No thanks.

 

Good point. And apart from that, I really don't know why I should trust Russian software less than, say, American or German software.

 

He is someone who has to watch what he says, after all, he does business with the Russian Government, so his opinion may be a little skewed, but at the end of the day, I have not seen any evidence at all, that the product is any more dangerous than any other.

 

Yeah, Kaspersky is a spearhead for that modern day Fantômas/Fu Manchu/Adolfoid called Putin, we must trust the glorious helmsmen called Western leaders, and Larry the cat, and everything will be fine, and our bathrooms will always smell like roses.