Illustration by Kristen Radtke / The Verge
The Biden administration is announcing plans to ban the sale of Kaspersky Lab’s antivirus software in the United States due to national security concerns, Reuters reports.
Sources told Reuters that Kaspersky’s close ties to the Russian government pose a national security risk, potentially letting the company — and the Russian government — steal sensitive information from, install malware on, or withhold updates from Americans’ computers.
The Biden administration is expected to announce the ban Thursday. Kaspersky will be banned from conducting new US business 30 days after the restrictions are published. The ban will also prohibit downloads of software updates, resales, and licensing of the antivirus software, according to Reuters….