MOSCOW - Russian cybersecurity company Kaspersky Lab hopes to continue its cooperation with Barclays despite accusations that the former has been spying on the London-based bank's customers, the company’s General Manager in the United Kingdom and Ireland, Adam Maskatiya, told Sputnik on Monday.
Last week, the Financial Times media outlet reported, citing a UK government source, that the country’s intelligence services had suspected Kaspersky Lab of using its antivirus software for spying purposes. The article said that more than 2 million Barclays customers, who got a free subscription to Kaspersky Lab, may have been targeted by the alleged spying program. Barclays officials reportedly want to end their deal with Kaspersky Lab over commercial reasons that are not linked to these rumors.
"Kaspersky Lab continues to work with Barclays to provide its customers with internet security. Barclays, through its global reach, has done much to improve public awareness of cybersecurity threats and we look forward to continuing our relationship to help keep its customers protected online," Maskatiya said.
The company’s press service pointed out once again that it had never allowed any state, including Russia, to spy on its customers.
In September, the US Homeland Security Department ordered state agencies to stop using Kaspersky products, citing security risks. The company has refuted all the accusations.