Kaspersky Lab response to Section 1634 of the National Defense Authorization Act for Fiscal Year 2018

Woburn, MA – December 12, 2017 – "Kaspersky Lab continues to have serious concerns about Section 1634 of the National Defense Authorization Act for Fiscal Year 2018. All software, including various products more widely deployed in government networks than Kaspersky Lab software, can have vulnerabilities exploited by a malicious cyber actor. Yet, Congress failed to address this fact or take a comprehensive look at federal IT sourcing policies to determine what improvements, if any, Congress could make to existing statutory and administrative authorities related to protecting government networks. Instead, Congress singled out Kaspersky Lab based solely on the location of its headquarters, resulting in substantial and irreparable harm to the company, its U.S.-based employees, and its U.S.-based business partners. Kaspersky Lab is assessing whether any further action is appropriate to protect its interests. In the meantime, Kaspersky Lab continues to prioritize protecting its customers from cyber threats, regardless of their origin or purpose, and collaborating globally with the IT security community to fight cybercrime." – Attributable to Kaspersky Lab