Just months after cyber security giant Kaspersky closed up shop in the US, the company has announced its UK office will also be closing, laying off dozens of workers.
In a statement, Kaspersky confirmed it will be ‘reorienting’ its business towards its partner channel in the UK. It added it has ‘(fewer) than 50 employees’ in its London office, and that it will begin a ‘wind down’ of its operations.
In June 2024, the firm was banned from selling its products in the US after being accused of having ties to the Russian Government – something it has always denied – insisting it maintains independent from any outside influence.
Staying efficient
Kaspersky’s statement confirmed the business will continue in the UK through use of partner channels, but the Kaspersky office itself will close.
“This step will enable our company to harness available business opportunities in the U.K. market in a more efficient manner, strengthening overall business prosperity,” spokesperson Francesco Tius said.
“Our customers and partners in the U.K. will maintain full access to the company’s European team and its strong and well-established partner network, through which we will continue distributing Kaspersky´s industry-leading cybersecurity products and services,”
After the firm was forced to close in the US, some Kaspersky customers were alarmed to find their antivirus forcibly uninstalled and replaced with new software UltraAV. The update was pushed without giving customers any option to accept or decline, which garnered some criticism for the security company.
However, Kaspersky insists email notifications in the weeks leading up to the update gave customers sufficient notice, and that the transition allows users to maintain access to their VPNs, identity theft protection, and password managers.
Via TechCrunch