Kaspersky Shutting Down US Operations as Government Ban Takes Effect

The Russian government can potentially access US data through Kaspersky and put the country’s security at risk, the Commerce Department warned.

An employee types on a computer keyboard at the headquarters of Internet security giant Kaspersky in Moscow on Oct. 17, 2016. Kirill Kudryavtsev/AFP via Getty Images

Russian cybersecurity company Kaspersky Labs confirmed it intends to shut down all operations in the United States following a government ban imposed last month.

The U.S. Department of Commerce prohibited Kaspersky from selling its antivirus software and other cybersecurity products in the United States beginning July 20 after determining that the company posed an “undue or unacceptable risk to national security.”