Customers in the U.S. who use antivirus software from Moscow-based cybersecurity firm Kaspersky are finding that the software has been removed and replaced with antivirus protection from another company, UltraAV. Kaspersky says it communicated the move to customers via email, but that it’s still caught some by surprise, according to sites including The Hacker News and TechCrunch.
The reason for the move is an announcement by Kaspersky in July that it would withdraw from the US market due to sanctions imposed on the company by the US Department of Commerce that banned its software.
Kaspersky said in a statement to CNET that it has partnered with UltraAV, a company owned by Pango Group, a holding company based in Burlington, Massachusetts, to protect customers in the U.S.
“Information about the transition has been communicated to all U.S. users who are eligible for the replacement in a series of email messages by Kaspersky and UltraAV,” the company said in a statement. “Kaspersky and UltraAV are rolling out the transition in waves, to ensure that the process is smooth and that users do not experience a gap in their protection following Kaspersky’s exit from the market.”
Read more: Best Antivirus Software for 2024
A webpage provides detailed information about the transition and the UltraAV product. The company welcomes users to the software, which it says includes a password manager, VPN, and identity theft protection. The antivirus software can be used on up to 20 devices, but that doesn’t apply to iOS devices. The company does, however, offer its UltraVPN software for iOS.
UltraAV says there will be no changes to billing and fees, and users will receive instructions on how to activate their new account.
In a feature comparison chart, UltraAV says it lacks Kaspersky’s webcam protection and online payment protection features, but does offer real-time authentication alerts, high-risk transaction monitoring and $1 million in identity theft insurance, features that are missing from Kaspersky’s software. UltraAV says customers began receiving email notifications about the transition on Sept. 5, and that there were also notifications in the Kaspersky app and account pages.
According to UltraAV’s FAQ, the cutoff date for support or updates from Kaspersky is September 30th.