Germany’s Office for Information Security (BSI) recommended users find alternatives for Kaspersky products, saying the antivirus software company could be forced to carry out attacks or spy on behalf of the Russian government.
Russia has been widely criticized for its late-February invasion of neighboring Ukraine, and has threatened European Union and NATO nations.
In a statement posted to its website, Kaspersky said Germany’s warning is based on political grounds rather than a technical assessment of its products.
“We will continue to assure our partners and customers in the quality and integrity of our products, and we will be working with the BSI for clarification on its decision and for the means to address its and other regulators’ concerns,” the statement read.
The Kaspersky statement noted that it believes in peaceful dialogue to resolve conflicts and that “war isn’t good for anyone.”
The warning and rationale against Kaspersky are similar to the U.S. government banning the use of Kaspersky products from government networks in 2018. A Department of Homeland Security official noted that Kaspersky is obligated under Russian law to assist the Federal Security Service on intelligence matters.
