U.S. bans use of Kaspersky software in federal agencies amid concerns of Russian espionage

["Dave Farber" <farber () gmail com>]

> Begin forwarded message:
>
> From: Dewayne Hendricks <dewayne () warpspeed com>
> Subject: [Dewayne-Net] U.S. bans use of Kaspersky software in federal agencies amid concerns of Russian espionage
> Date: September 13, 2017 at 2:40:50 PM EDT
> To: Multiple recipients of Dewayne-Net <dewayne-net () warpspeed com>
> Reply-To: dewayne-net () warpspeed com
>
> U.S. bans use of Kaspersky software in federal agencies amid concerns of Russian espionage
> By Ellen Nakashima and Jack Gillum
> Sep 13 2017
> <https://www.washingtonpost.com/world/national-security/us-to-ban-use-of-kaspersky-software-in-federal-agencies-amid-concerns-of-russian-espionage/2017/09/13/36b717d0-989e-11e7-82e4-f1076f6d6152_story.html>
>
> The U.S. government on Wednesday banned the use of a Russian brand of security software by federal agencies and gave 
> them three months to remove the software amid concerns the company has ties to state-sponsored cyberespionage 
> activities, according to U.S. officials.
>
> Acting Homeland Security secretary Elaine Duke ordered that Kaspersky Lab software be barred from federal civilian 
> government networks, giving agencies a timeline to get rid of it, according to several officials familiar with the 
> plan who were not authorized to speak publicly about it. Duke ordered the scrub on the grounds that the company has 
> connections to the Russian government and its software poses a security risk.
>
> “The Department is concerned about the ties between certain Kaspersky officials and Russian intelligence and other 
> government agencies, and requirements under Russian law that allow Russian intelligence agencies to request or compel 
> assistance from Kaspersky and to intercept communications transiting Russian networks,” the department said in a 
> statement. “The risk that the Russian government, whether acting on its own or in collaboration with Kaspersky, could 
> capitalize on access provided by Kaspersky products to compromise federal information and information systems 
> directly implicates U.S. national security.”
>
> The directive comes months after the federal General Services Administration, the agency in charge of government 
> purchasing, removed Kaspersky from its list of approved vendors. In doing so, the GSA suggested a vulnerability 
> exists in Kaspersky that could give the Kremlin backdoor access to the systems the company protects.
>
> In a statement to The Washington Post on Wednesday, the company said: “Kaspersky Lab doesn’t have inappropriate ties 
> with any government, which is why no credible evidence has been presented publicly by anyone or any organization to 
> back up the false allegations made against the company. The only conclusion seems to be that Kaspersky Lab, a private 
> company, is caught in the middle of a geopolitical fight, and it’s being treated unfairly even though the company has 
> never helped, nor will help, any government in the world with its cyberespionage or offensive cyber efforts.”
>
> “Kaspersky Lab has always acknowledged that it provides appropriate products and services to governments around the 
> world to protect those organizations from cyberthreats, but it does not have unethical ties or affiliations with any 
> government, including Russia,” the firm said.
>
> The directive comes in the wake of an unprecedented Russian operation to interfere in the U.S. presidential election 
> that saw Russian spy services hack the networks of the Democratic National Committee and other political 
> organizations and release damaging information.
>
> At least a half-dozen federal agencies run Kaspersky on their networks, the U.S. officials said, although there may 
> be other networks where an agency’s chief information security officer — the official ultimately responsible for 
> systems security — might not be aware it is being used.
>
> [snip]
>
> Dewayne-Net RSS Feed: http://dewaynenet.wordpress.com/feed/
> Twitter: https://twitter.com/wa8dzp




-------------------------------------------
Archives: https://www.listbox.com/member/archive/247/=now
RSS Feed: https://www.listbox.com/member/archive/rss/247/18849915-ae8fa580
Modify Your Subscription: https://www.listbox.com/member/?member_id=18849915&id_secret=18849915-aa268125
Unsubscribe Now: 
https://www.listbox.com/unsubscribe/?member_id=18849915&id_secret=18849915-32545cb4&post_id=20170913173139:EB705A98-98CA-11E7-BFA7-D637B4C2D52A
Powered by Listbox: http://www.listbox.com