New Kaspersky AV Free update

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Given the current geopolitical scene, any user opinions on above new version??

Zig

4 users thanked author for this post.

Nibbled To Death By Ducks, OscarCP, AJNorth, Fred

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Given the latest opinions Kaspersky is concidered comprimized until it is proven not-comprimized. Various CERTS and national NCSC’s may help you out

* _ the metaverse is poisonous _ *

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Zig: “Given the current geopolitical situation” and the current political situation in Russia, the prudent thing, in the case of something like Kapersky, is to pause its use until things become clearer — and perhaps permanently, as that may not happen any time soon.

Kapersky himself might be an angel with wings, harp and halo, but he is, and more to the point his company and its products are, as anyone and anything in Russia is these days, at the mercy of those running the country. And as these are not up to tolerate any opposition, they are also apt to use any means available to retaliate against the Western nations for their very severe sanctions brought about by their WWII-style invasion of Ukraine — and one of the obvious means for retaliating is Kapersky’s AV, if considered as a potentially very disruptive cyberweapon that is “available” to those Powers that Be, in practice, if not necessarily according to Russia’s written law.

Ex-Windows user (Win. 98, XP, 7); since mid-2017 using also macOS. Presently on Monterey 12.15 & sometimes running also Linux (Mint).

MacBook Pro circa mid-2015, 15" display, with 16GB 1600 GHz DDR3 RAM, 1 TB SSD, a Haswell architecture Intel CPU with 4 Cores and 8 Threads model i7-4870HQ @ 2.50GHz.
Intel Iris Pro GPU with Built-in Bus, VRAM 1.5 GB, Display 2880 x 1800 Retina, 24-Bit color.
macOS Monterey; browsers: Waterfox "Current", Vivaldi and (now and then) Chrome; security apps. Intego AV

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I have always been a big Kaspersky fan.  But I think that OscarCP is correct in his assessment.  Yesterday, I permanently uninstalled Kaspersky from my Windows pc’s.

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Fred wrote:

Given the latest opinions Kaspersky is concidered comprimized until it is proven not-comprimized. Various CERTS and national NCSC’s may help you out

You always find everyone guilty until proven innocent ?

I am running Kaspersky for years and don’t see any reason to switch.

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Alex5723 wrote:

Fred wrote:

Given the latest opinions Kaspersky is concidered comprimized until it is proven not-comprimized. Various CERTS and national NCSC’s may help you out

You always find everyone guilty until proven innocent ?

I am running Kaspersky for years and don’t see any reason to switch.

At what planet are you living on?
Read the comments of your own FBI, NSA or NCSC-US or Interpol.
But whom am I to compete with the expertise of “I have never noticed anything”.
Or is this a site that gives some real and good advice?

* _ the metaverse is poisonous _ *

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Couldn’t find a single evidence (FBI, NSA or NCSC-US..) that Kaspersky is considered compromised.

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https://www.defenseone.com/threats/2017/12/kaspersky-strikes-back-after-us-government-ban/144677/

As I recall the initial reason for the ban was that a Defense contractor’s computer was supposedly compromised through the Kaspersky antivirus.

The issue now is how Eugene himself isn’t or probably cannot distance himself from the Russian government.

Susan Bradley Patch Lady

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Nibbled To Death By Ducks

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Susan wrote: “The issue now is how Eugene himself isn’t or probably cannot distance himself from the Russian government.”

I’ll go with “probably cannot.”

As to his controversial record: If I recall correctly, nothing was definitively proven against him, although he seems to have been tried, judged and convicted, in some people’s minds, by association:

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Kaspersky_bans_and_allegations_of_Russian_government_ties

Excerpt:

“ According to the International New York Times, Kaspersky [software] has “become one of Russia’s most recognized high-tech exports, but its market-share in the United States has been hampered by its origins”. According to Gartner, “There’s no evidence that they have any back-doors in their software or any ties to the Russian mafia or state… but there is still a concern that you can’t operate in Russia without being controlled by the ruling party”. CEO Eugene Kaspersky’s prior work for the Russian military and his education at a KGB-sponsored technical college has led to allegations of being employed by Russia to expose US cyberweapons, though he denies this. Analysts such as Gartner’s Peter Firstbrook say suspicions about the firm’s Russian roots have hindered its expansion in the US. The company has denied that it has direct ties with or has engaged with the Russian government. ”

It’s not beyond the scope of what’s possible and even likely, that his software’s reputation and even his own might end up being one more bit of collateral damage of these infaust developments in Russia.

Ex-Windows user (Win. 98, XP, 7); since mid-2017 using also macOS. Presently on Monterey 12.15 & sometimes running also Linux (Mint).

MacBook Pro circa mid-2015, 15" display, with 16GB 1600 GHz DDR3 RAM, 1 TB SSD, a Haswell architecture Intel CPU with 4 Cores and 8 Threads model i7-4870HQ @ 2.50GHz.
Intel Iris Pro GPU with Built-in Bus, VRAM 1.5 GB, Display 2880 x 1800 Retina, 24-Bit color.
macOS Monterey; browsers: Waterfox "Current", Vivaldi and (now and then) Chrome; security apps. Intego AV

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Alex5723

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Zig wrote:

Given the current geopolitical scene, any user opinions on above new version??

Zig

What new version ?

(currently on 21.3.10.391(h)

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Personally, I’m of the opinion that Kaspersky was treated unfairly by our government and politicians. The case presented against him was weak, not what it appeared to be, and was the result of ignorance on the part of those making the accusations. In an official capacity, I would have been investigated if I had stated this at the time.

Now, however, the situation is different. While I wouldn’t have any qualms about using Kaspersky in my own network, I wouldn’t advise business clients do the same. Given the current political situation, who can say with any certainty that Putin hasn’t forcibly taken over Kaspersky and other IT companies for potential cyber warfare operations against his Western opponents.

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I entirely agree with Carl, at least on his advice to his clients: This is not about Kapersky, it’s about anything made in Russia with potential for its use as a disruptive weapon, including his company, being now under the inevitable suspicion of having been taken over, or quite likely to be taken over, by an autocratic government out to retaliate by all (at least for now non-military) means at its disposal, cybernetic ones included, against the nations sanctioning it for their invasion of Ukraine.

As Zig has written “given the current geopolitical scene.” Kapersky himself is not a  “geopolitical scene.” He is in a geopolitical scene he cannot do anything practical about, and a very bad scene at that.

Ex-Windows user (Win. 98, XP, 7); since mid-2017 using also macOS. Presently on Monterey 12.15 & sometimes running also Linux (Mint).

MacBook Pro circa mid-2015, 15" display, with 16GB 1600 GHz DDR3 RAM, 1 TB SSD, a Haswell architecture Intel CPU with 4 Cores and 8 Threads model i7-4870HQ @ 2.50GHz.
Intel Iris Pro GPU with Built-in Bus, VRAM 1.5 GB, Display 2880 x 1800 Retina, 24-Bit color.
macOS Monterey; browsers: Waterfox "Current", Vivaldi and (now and then) Chrome; security apps. Intego AV

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Oscar, OT, but did you see this #2431044?

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Carl: Thanks for trying to help. I have seen that already, but I do not use Windows Explorer, because my machine is a Mac. I was hoping someone with experience with Mac’s hardware might give me some hints, but, as you know …

For passing on this kind of information it is best to use “direct messaging.”

Ex-Windows user (Win. 98, XP, 7); since mid-2017 using also macOS. Presently on Monterey 12.15 & sometimes running also Linux (Mint).

MacBook Pro circa mid-2015, 15" display, with 16GB 1600 GHz DDR3 RAM, 1 TB SSD, a Haswell architecture Intel CPU with 4 Cores and 8 Threads model i7-4870HQ @ 2.50GHz.
Intel Iris Pro GPU with Built-in Bus, VRAM 1.5 GB, Display 2880 x 1800 Retina, 24-Bit color.
macOS Monterey; browsers: Waterfox "Current", Vivaldi and (now and then) Chrome; security apps. Intego AV

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The US Government has been ticked off about Kapersky ever since Kapersky blew the lid on NSA spyware (The NSA has been putting spyware on Hard Drive Firmware):

https://www.wired.com/2015/02/nsa-firmware-hacking/

So don’t expect a fair review from the US Government on this company.

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Zig wrote:

Given the current geopolitical scene, any user opinions on above new version??

Zig

Place: Bonn, Deutschland
date: 15-03-2022

According to Article 7 of the BSI Act, the Federal Office for Information Security (BSI) warns against using antivirus software from Russian manufacturer Kaspersky. The BSI recommends replacing programs from Kaspersky’s antivirus software portfolio with alternative products.
Antivirus software, including its real-time-capable cloud services, has extensive system privileges and must maintain a permanent, encrypted, and unverifiable connection to the manufacturer’s servers (at least for updates) because of the system. Therefore, confidence in a manufacturer’s reliability and self-protection and its authentic ability to act is crucial to the safe use of such systems. When in doubt about the reliability of the manufacturer, virus protection software poses a particular risk to an IT infrastructure that needs to be protected.
The actions of military and/or intelligence services in Russia and Russia’s threats against the EU, NATO and the Federal Republic of Germany in the course of the current armed conflict carry a significant risk of a successful IT attack. A Russian IT manufacturer could carry out offensive operations itself, be forced against its will to attack target systems, or be spied on without its knowledge as a victim of a cyber operation, or be used as a tool to attack its own customers.
All users of antivirus software can be affected by such actions. Especially companies and governments with special security interests and operators of vital infrastructures are at risk. You have the option of seeking advice from the BSI or the responsible bodies for the protection of the constitution.
Businesses and other organizations must carefully plan and implement the replacement of critical parts of their IT security infrastructure. If IT security products and in particular antivirus software were disabled without preparation, one could be vulnerable to attacks from the Internet. Switching to other products involves temporary losses in comfort, functionality and safety. The BSI recommends conducting an individual assessment and consideration of the current situation and, if necessary, consulting IT security service providers certified by the BSI.

Further information is summarized in the FAQ.

https://www.bsi.bund.de/SharedDocs/Downloads/DE/BSI/Publikationen/Warnungen-nach-P7_BSIG/2022/BSI_W-004-220315.html?nn=1029964

Twitter: @BSI_Bund ;  #GermanyDigitalSecureBSI

More information
Download Warning according to §7 BSIG:
Virus protection software from the manufacturer Kaspersky (PDF) Cyber ​​security situation on the Ukraine crisis:
https://www.bsi.bund.de/SharedDocs/Downloads/DE/BSI/Publikationen/Warnungen-nach-P7_BSIG/2022/BSI_W-004-220315.pdf?__blob=publicationFile&v=12

.

* _ the metaverse is poisonous _ *

2 users thanked author for this post.

OscarCP, dgc-art

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Germany warns against Russian anti-virus use – BBC News

 

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According to the BSI warning Q&A in the article linked by Fred, the German government is recommending, through this agency, no to use Kaspersky’s AV, but is not forbidding its use by German individual users, as well as private and public organizations. So, at the moment, the official position there is somewhat fluid.

Personally, I think that enough has been said here already that is compellingly in favor of ending, or at least pausing, the use of Kaspersky antimalware software.

This company, whether innocent of the suspicions raised about it, or not, is another casualty of war. As Eugene Kaspersky himself has said, in concluding his guarded comment on Twitter about Ukraine, and then being widely criticized for not being explicit enough about it: “War is not good for anyone.”

Ex-Windows user (Win. 98, XP, 7); since mid-2017 using also macOS. Presently on Monterey 12.15 & sometimes running also Linux (Mint).

MacBook Pro circa mid-2015, 15" display, with 16GB 1600 GHz DDR3 RAM, 1 TB SSD, a Haswell architecture Intel CPU with 4 Cores and 8 Threads model i7-4870HQ @ 2.50GHz.
Intel Iris Pro GPU with Built-in Bus, VRAM 1.5 GB, Display 2880 x 1800 Retina, 24-Bit color.
macOS Monterey; browsers: Waterfox "Current", Vivaldi and (now and then) Chrome; security apps. Intego AV

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Fred

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OscarCP wrote:

According to the BSI warning Q&A in the article linked by Fred, the German government is recommending, through this agency, no to use Kaspersky’s AV,

This is the same BSI that bought and use NSO’s Pegasus against German citizens.
I don’t trust them.

Again, this is jsut speculation with no evidence.

I haven’t read any warning from US government, BSI, NSA,… not to use Microsoft’s Windows after Microsoft surrendered Windows source code to Russia, China and probably other dictatorship countries.

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Full quote: “According to the BSI warning Q&A in the article linked by Fred, the German government is recommending, through this agency, no to use Kaspersky’s AV, but is not forbidding its use by German individual users, as well as private and public organizations. So, at the moment, the official position there is somewhat fluid.”

Ex-Windows user (Win. 98, XP, 7); since mid-2017 using also macOS. Presently on Monterey 12.15 & sometimes running also Linux (Mint).

MacBook Pro circa mid-2015, 15" display, with 16GB 1600 GHz DDR3 RAM, 1 TB SSD, a Haswell architecture Intel CPU with 4 Cores and 8 Threads model i7-4870HQ @ 2.50GHz.
Intel Iris Pro GPU with Built-in Bus, VRAM 1.5 GB, Display 2880 x 1800 Retina, 24-Bit color.
macOS Monterey; browsers: Waterfox "Current", Vivaldi and (now and then) Chrome; security apps. Intego AV

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Alex5723

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OscarCP wrote:

So, at the moment, the official position there is somewhat fluid.”

Quite right, this is a political entamated answer. I can imagine that people don’t want to be hussled into a WW3 or an atomic-bom escalation. That all would be faught on the still-damaged-grounds of middle and western and eastern Europe. So Disneyland-usa will be safe for recreation then, I recon.

Info for those (few, I hope) people here who give advice or opinions guided buy their gutfeeling or hearsay only: Is there anyone who believes that the Seven-Eys (or Eleven-Eys) agencies, or the Critical-Infrastructures, are still using Kaspersky?

* _ the metaverse is poisonous _ *

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OscarCP

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Fred wrote commenting on my previous opinion: “So Disneyland-usa will be safe for recreation then, I recon.”

Well, not really.

Actually what might happen is not so much “an atomic-bomb escalation”, more likely a thermonuclear one, that will not leave anything and anyone still around for long anywhere, particularly in the Northern Hemisphere.

As the WWII Supreme Allied Commander and later US President General Dwight Eisenhower said in one of his last speeches as US President, back in the Fifties, describing the likely outcome of a nuclear war, then a definite possibility: “The death-dealing winds circling the Northern Hemisphere will bring the fallout to all countries in it, sparing none.”
And that was just for starters.

And with the USA and Russia still keeping many Intercontinental Ballistic Missiles each with multiple H-bomb warheads, each warhead targeted independently to a different site (MIRVed ICBMs), both Moscow and Washington DC are said to be crisscrossed by grids of targets where the H-Bombs in those ICBMs directed against them are already aimed to hit their targets in each city — if those ICBMs are ever launched. Living in the metropolitan area of the latter city and within the likely blast/thermal flash radius, I am rather interested in this issue.

Once more quoting Eugene Kaspersky: “War is not good for anyone.”

Ex-Windows user (Win. 98, XP, 7); since mid-2017 using also macOS. Presently on Monterey 12.15 & sometimes running also Linux (Mint).

MacBook Pro circa mid-2015, 15" display, with 16GB 1600 GHz DDR3 RAM, 1 TB SSD, a Haswell architecture Intel CPU with 4 Cores and 8 Threads model i7-4870HQ @ 2.50GHz.
Intel Iris Pro GPU with Built-in Bus, VRAM 1.5 GB, Display 2880 x 1800 Retina, 24-Bit color.
macOS Monterey; browsers: Waterfox "Current", Vivaldi and (now and then) Chrome; security apps. Intego AV

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I have been an enthusiastic and satisfied user of Kaspersky Internet Security for 12 years.

I’ve ignored:-

Barclays Bank pulling their free download.

Advice from US CIA, FBI, NSA and UK GCHQ.

That the company HQ is in Moscow.

The relationship between Eugene and President Putin.

However I’m opposed to the Russian attack and war on Ukraine, recently I’ve deleted Kaspersky Internet Security from my two PC’s  & Android phone and installed another product.

OK, so Kaspersky have my money, but if many users do the same Kaspersky might notice the fall of signature downloads!

When filling in the exit questionnaire, my comment was “Stop the War!”

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OscarCP

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