Kaspersky confirms it is pulling its VPN from Russia
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Russian users will soon be unable to connect to Kaspersky’s VPN service.
The Moscow-based company has announced that it is ceasing operations and sales of its Secure Connection VPN so users can be assured that the process will be done gradually to minimize impact.
The company’s free VPN version will be suspended from November 15, and paying customers can subscribe until December 2022 and enjoy the service until the end of 2023.
Russia VPNs Face Increasing Pressure
The company announced the details of the shutdown in a blog post (opens in new tab)explaining, “the situation is completely similar to Kaspersky Secure Connection, which is part of several integrated solutions for home users.”
This means that for all users who have already paid for the security bundle, the application will be available until the subscription expires, and vice versa – so those who use the free option will only have a few days to look at alternatives.
Kaspersky further pointed out that this decision only applies to people in Russia.
“The Russian-language version of the application will still be available on Kaspersky Lab websites and mobile app stores. For users outside of Russia, the set of available functions and VPN servers will not change.”
TechRadar Pro has reached out to Kaspersky to ask the reason behind this move, but a company spokesperson said they can’t comment on the decision at this time.
What is certain is that the Kremlin has been actively fighting against Russian VPNs for some time now.
Last year, the country’s telecommunications watchdog Roskomnadzor banned some of the best VPN providers out there. These include some of the biggest names on the market such as ExpressVPN, NordVPN, and IPVanish.
And while the use of such security services among Russians boomed after the war in Ukraine, authorities have reaffirmed their intention to block VPN software that violates Russian law by allowing access to illegal content.
At the same time, providers that fail to meet the requirement to connect to the federal state information system — which allows for state censorship and control over users’ activities — will also be forced out of the country.
More recently, the The order of Roskomnadzor (opens in new tab) to state-owned companies to share details about their use of VPN services.
Through BleepingComputer (opens in new tab)
