Blog: Kaspersky Labs open Transparency Centre in Switzerland

Kaspersky Labs are global leaders in the fight against cyber threats. In order to offer a better service Kaspersky have decided to switch their assembly line to Zurich in Switzerland. The assembly line is where the compilation and creation of products, as well as threat detection rules updates takes place. These are now being performed under the supervision of third parties, to offer a better product before they are rolled out to clients.
Kaspersky will also be shifting the servers storing Kaspersky Security Network data for users in Europe, North America, Australia, Japan, South Korea and Singapore. More countries will be added to this list gradually. This move will also be independently reviewed.

Why relocate the assembly line and KSN data?

The current level of protection and data processing and development infrastructure is already top of class. However in order to offer a continuously better service Kaspersky are constantly on the lookout for ways to improve. The transparency centre will increase the resilience of Kaspersky’s supply chain risks, as well as offer more transparency to their clients. The source code will be reviewed at the Transparency Centre, and compiled at the same centre before being shipped to clients.
More importantly by storing their Kaspersky Security network data in Switzerland, under the supervision of independent organisations, means that any access to the data is meticulously logged, allowing for review of logs should any concerns arise.

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What is the Transparency Centre?

The Transparency Centre will allow trusted partners and government stakeholders to review product source code as well as the tools used. This facility will provide access to:

  • Software development documentation
  • Source code of any released product; past, present and future
  • Threat detection rules databases
  • The source code for cloud services that receive and store data of customers based in the selected areas
  • Tools used for the creation of build scripts, databases and cloud services.

Why and who is supervising?

Security is a trust industry. Kaspersky have become global leaders in the provision of anti-viruses and other IT security detection for issues such as malware and identity theft, because over the years they have shown that they are trustworthy and efficient.

However the Global Transparency Initiative will establish clear reviewing processes so that users do not have to rely on Kaspersky’s word alone.

In order to achieve this stakeholders will be allowed to access and review software to make sure everything works as it should.
Moreover Kaspersky will be supporting the creation of a nonprofit organization that will take responsibility for this work. And not only for Kaspersky. Other partners and members are free to join this organisation.

It must be stressed that the Transparency Centre and this organisation, as separate entities, will be independent from each other.

Why Switzerland?

We chose this location for two reasons. First, Switzerland has maintained its policy of neutrality for two centuries. Second, the country has strong data protection legislation. We believe these two qualities make Switzerland the perfect place to move part of our sensitive infrastructure.

Intertek Security

Intertek Labs is a proud partner of Kaspersky Labs. We believe that by offering the best solutions to our clients we will be building a strong relationship based on trust and mutual understanding.

We believe this step by Kaspersky Labs highlights their commitment to their customers, a philosophy that is instilled in our ethos.