KIS

No. It found Krusty put spyware on his neighbors computers.

Come on, Krusty! Don't just toss out wild accusations without some sort of supporting evidence. Did you bother to search, "Kaspersky finds US spyware"? Or are you just trying to obfuscate the issue to make Kaspersky look less complicit? I suspect the latter.

Beyond the fact there is zero evidence, or even a single report that I can find, it must be noted that no security software is able to conclusively determine the organization behind the malware unless that organization claims responsibility. With the abundance of proxy servers, it is simple to make the country of origin appear to be just about any country you desire. Even normal users can and do do this with VPNs. If you live in Germany, for example, and visiting Brazil, you can use a VPN to fool your bank into Germany thinking you are doing your on-line banking tasks right there in Germany. This is even perfectly legal!

In post #10 I was being sarcastic. My apologies if that was not obvious, thus not understood. I will be straightforward this time. The KGB, CIA, FBI, NSA, German FIS, MI5, MI6, Mossad and others do NOT leave incontrovertible, incriminating evidence behind that reveals they planted the malware! They are not that stupid or careless!

Now for sure, the MSS (Chinese intelligence agency), for example, could plant malware that "appears" to be installed by the CIA. In fact, I would not be surprised if that type "spoofing" happens a lot in cyberwarfare. But that would be pretty obvious to the intelligence parties involved, because again, they are not that stupid.

I won't speak for others unless asked to. Why? Because I cannot read their minds to know exactly what they mean.

My reply that you quoted was, first and foremost, in response to the totally false claim that, "Defender is not an AV". To suggest that would be the same as claiming Norton, McAfee, BitDefender, AVG, Avast and the others are not AVs either. Or that the Toyota Corolla and Honda Civic are not cars. Just not true.

Beyond that, the entire rest of the claim is untrue too. Detecting cracks is not detecting patches. And Microsoft Defender for Business is actually a different (similar but different) program than Microsoft Defender that comes as part of "Windows Security" in the W10/W11 operating systems.

***

Now, if we can - this topic is about Kaspersky, not Defender. Let's get back to that, okay?

 

Not on the customer's machine, but Kaspersky found out the NSA got compromised by hackers, their private EternalBlue exploit kit (which wasn't patched by MS as the US gov't allegedly didn't want it patched) was used to install WannaCry, NotPetya, TrickBot by 3rd party malicious actors. They figured out the exploit kit was originally used by the NSA for espionage, and you'd imagine this didn't go well for the reputation of the NSA.
You can google EternalBlue NSA Kaspersky, but here's a quick summary
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=9KfY1hlibZ0

 

Ah ha. Great, thanks. I remember reading about it here at the time but couldn't remember the specific details.

 

"Use Kaspersky Antivirus Software? You'll Be Migrated to Pango's UltraAV

US users of Kaspersky will be offloaded to a new antivirus provider called UltraAV after the Biden administration banned Kaspersky products for alleged national security risks.

Kaspersky has reached a deal to migrate its US customers to a new antivirus provider...

On Thursday, Kaspersky confirmed that it’s migrating its US user base to UltraAV, an antivirus product from Boston-based Pango Group, which has been acquiring VPN providers.

'As a result of the agreement reached between Kaspersky and its trusted partner UltraAV, users of consumer products in the US will continue to receive reliable anti-virus protection under their existing subscription,' the Russian company said. 'The replacement solution from UltraAV will also include features like VPN, password manager, and identity theft protection.'..."

https://www.pcmag.com/news/use-kaspersky-antivirus-software-youll-be-migrated-to-pangos-ultraav

 

So the USA users of Kaspersky who were planning to continue using the software using a VPN are now screwed. Their existing accounts will now be migrated over to this UltraAV and they will no longer be able to access Kaspersky through them. It also means that they will not receive refunds for their existing subscriptions.

 

I assume he was referring to this:

From the following article:
Kaspersky and the Russian government - Wikipedia

 

How are they screwed? Did you even follow the link hawki provided? Note it says,

 

By the way, where this UltraAV comes from? never heard that name before...

 

Same here.

 

Google is your friend - it only takes a second

 

I have been searching for info about UltraAV and all that I have learned and more can be found in this Reddit post:

https://www.reddit.com/r/antivirus/...=web3xcss&utm_term=1&utm_content=share_button

Here is the link to the entire Reddit thread:

https://www.reddit.com/r/antivirus/comments/1f9ps3e/kaspersky_beginning_transition_of_us_users_to/

The bottom line is that currently THERE APPEARS TO BE NOTHING publicly available about the technical aspects of UltraAV or any indication of how good/bad it is.

 

Appears to be the AV solution that was included as part of UltraVPN;

https://10bestantivirusproviders.com/ultraav.html

Web site here: https://ultrasecureav.com/

Without any AV lab testing and certification, I would stay away from it.

 

Yeah - Just found it

Here is the Support Page

https://support.ultrasecureav.com/hc/en-us

Windows getting started/support page

https://support.ultrasecureav.com/hc/en-us/categories/29603711551252

 

Well if Kaspersky is trying to hide under another umbrella they will be taken out by the US Government. The website is not that old.

 

Also: https://ultrasecureav.com/kl-transition

 

Because they paid money to get the protection of the quality offered by Kaspersky, not some random unknown AV company. Its like you bought a subscription to drive a Lamborghini for 2 years, but then after a couple of months the Lamborghini was replaced by a horse and cart!

 

So this is disturbing:

"...By mid-September, Windows users will automatically transition from Kaspersky to UltraAV without any action needed by the user, a Pango spokesperson told ISMG..." (My Emphasis)

https://www.govinfosecurity.com/kaspersky-us-customers-migrate-to-pangos-ultraav-after-ban-a-26215

So it may be wise to uninstall all traces of Kaspersky products by mid September or possibly wake up on September 16 to find this mystery AV installed on your system doing who knows what on your system.

 

Maybe this UltraAV is just Kaspersky with a new name and slightly different UI.

 

Use Kaspersky Antivirus Software? You'll Be Migrated to Pango's UltraAV

https://www.pcmag.com/news/use-kaspersky-antivirus-software-youll-be-migrated-to-pangos-ultraav

 

You are making assumptions based on zero information. This could just as easily be like substituting your Lambo for an Aston Martin or Bugotti.

I have seen nothing to suggest Pango UltraAV is an inferior product to KIS. And for sure (at least as far as we can tell at this time) Pango does not have the Russian government's fingers in there pulling its strings - which despite some peoples beliefs (or disbeliefs) is important here.

KIS users have a choice. Go with the migration to Pango and get what appears at this time to be a very capable anti-malware solution, as well as the included VPN, password manager, and identity theft protection, or, don't renew your subscription and go with one of the many other capable subscription alternatives, or even one of the many very capable free alternatives, like Microsoft Defender, Avast, BitDefender, AVG, or Avria.

 

From the above linked govinfosecurity.com article;

Doubt many will be renewing/purchasing it at this price.

 

The pricing shown here: https://get.ultravpn.com/order-v5 , details what is going on. What your migrating to is in reality UltraVPN which includes anti-virus protection (UltraAV) by default.

This whole Kaspersky mitigation appears to be just a scheme to get people to use UltraVPN.

 

Why? Those are similar to KIS and most other paid solutions. Note full retail is rarely the final price for any of those products.

If someone in the first place is willing to pay regular, recurring subscription fees for their security software, then not sure the price matters for them.

No. It is to get Kaspersky (with its Russian government ties) out of American homes, businesses and government offices. Migrating to Pango UltraAV is just the consequence of that.

Note it would seem the UK and Germany and others are soon to follow as many have already instituted partial bans.

Minister Anand announces a ban on the use of WeChat and Kaspersky suite of applications on government mobile devices - Canada.ca
Germany warns against Russian anti-virus use (bbc.com)
European Parliament Votes to Ban Kaspersky Products - SecurityWeek

~ Off Topic Remarks Removed As Per Policy - Let's Not Get Political ~

 

You missed the whole point.

This is just a way for Kaspersky to monetize its exit from the U.S. market. It worked out a deal with UltraVPN to transfer its customer base to it. The assumption here is a percentage of that base will continue to use UltraVPN and renew their subscriptions.

Here's a review of UltraVPN: https://www.vpnmentor.com/reviews/ultravpn/ . It leaks DNS servers.

 

Ummm, no. You missed mine - though I could have explained it better.

You are right and this IS a way for Kaspersky to monetize it's exit. But make no mistake, losing this market is a huge financial loss. So this is a way to cut it's losses - without simply pulling out for a total loss.

This could have easily been a deal with AVG, BitDefender, Norton, McAfee or any other company that didn't have Russian ties. I have to assume UltraAV just offered the sweetest deal.

In any case, the main point I was making, and the ultimate impetus for this deal is the US telling Kaspersky to get out.