KASPERSKY LAB, CYBER CRIME’S RUSSIANNIGHTMARE
The Moscow-based firm was founded in 1997 and has since elbowed its way to the top of the anti-virus software market. Already second in Europe with individual users, it is now going after the business sector.
“We’re not yet safe from a digital 9/11.” an effective shock motto often used by Jean-Philippe Bichard, spokesperson in France for the Moscow-based Kaspersky Lab. Not that you’d expect anything different from a company that makes computer security its business. And yet is this just unabashed marketing? Not so sure. According to independent analysts, the boom in cyber crime is not to be taken lightly. In their last quarterly report on information security in Switzerland and abroad*, the country’s experts warn that cyber-crime expansion poses very real threats. Some attacks are directed at websites (often well-reputed sites) so as to make them infect visitors, while others serve as platforms for political positions. “Cyber crimes have gone far beyond the odd, indiscriminate virus release,” Bichard points out. “Today, a well-organized cyber-mafia runs the show, and they have the know-how to steal private information (such as users’ identities and profiles) using spyware. They then sell what they find to the highest bidder.” But as cyber crime progresses, so does security. To confront the myriad of cyber scams – malware, botnet, spam, phishing etc. – company and single-user data has come under private firm protection. A small group of companies have the market wrapped up: Symantec, McAfee, and Trend Micro lead the pack, followed closely by Kaspersky Lab.
Cryptographer Eugene Kaspersky set up the firm in Moscow in 1997. It has been growing ever since, right through the international market. Even Bichard admits this was no mean feat, owing to Russia’s less than pristine reputation in matters of law and security. Kaspersky has turned this to the firm’s advantage: “If we’ve succeeded worldwide despite that kind of stigma, it’s because we have a rock-solid product and service,” says Bichard.
200 million users Today, the Russian firm employs over 1,000 people in 16 offices worldwide. Its profits have multiplied 10-fold since 2005 to reach 120 million dollars going into the fourth quarter of 2008. It has 10 million clients and over 200 million end-users, making it Europe’s leader in that sector. Kaspersky has also made it to second place in the individual users’ market. In Switzerland it leads with 58 per cent of the market, ahead of Symantec, with 33 per cent.
Mobile internet access is the biggest challenge today. “Tomorrow’s niche market is clearly in security software for laptops and PDAs,” says Cedric Renouard, administrator for the Geneva-based Ilion Security, which specializes in computer auditing and counselling. Kaspersky has gotten a head start by offering a system dedicated to mobile machines.” The Russian firm has its sights on European leadership in the individual users’ market, and it also hopes to pull up to third position in the business sector, with a 20 per cent market share.
