Beginning on Thursday, the Russian cybersecurity firm Kaspersky automatically replaced its antivirus software with UltraAV’s antivirus program on users’ PCs across the United States.
As a result of Kaspersky being added to the U.S. government’s list of “foreign individuals, companies, and organizations deemed a national security concern” in June, the company chose to cease operations in the country and fire staff stationed there.
Due to possible threats to national security, the Biden administration also said on June 20 that Kaspersky antivirus software sales and updates would no longer be permitted in the US as of September 29, 2024.
Force-installed UltraAV on computers running Kaspersky
Numerous online customer reports, including those found in BleepingComputer’s forums, state that UltraAV’s software was installed on their computers without their knowledge or consent. As a result, many of them expressed fear that malware had been placed on their devices.
“I tried to start Kaspersky when I woke up and noticed this new antivirus program on my desktop, but it was gone. A customer commented, “I had to look up what happened because I was literally having a mini heart attack that my desktop had a virus that somehow uninstalled Kaspersky.”
To further matters, while though some users were able to remove UltraAV using the program’s uninstaller, others who attempted to do so with uninstall programs discovered that it had reinstalled itself after a reboot, raising additional worries about a possible malware infection.
Some also had UltraVPN installed, most likely as a result of their Kaspersky VPN membership.
Other than being a subsidiary of Pango Group, which also owns Comparitech, a website that reviews VPN software, and several VPN brands (such as Betternet, Hotspot Shield, and UltraVPN), not much is known about UltraAV.
On a page devoted to this forced migration away from Kaspersky’s software, UltraAV states on its official website, “If you are a paying Kaspersky customer, when the transition is complete UltraAV protection will be active on your device and you will be able to leverage all of the additional premium features.”
“Kaspersky will no longer be able to support or offer product upgrades for your service after September 30, 2024. This greatly increases your vulnerability to cybercrime.”
Reason for forcing the conversion to UltraAV: “Software update”
Concerning the mandatory migration to UltraAV, a Kaspersky staff member also posted a formal comment on the business’s official forums, stating that Kaspersky “partnered with antivirus provider UltraAV to ensure continued protection for US-based customers that will no longer have access to Kaspersky’s protections.”
“Kaspersky has additionally partnered with UltraAV to make the transition to their product as seamless as possible, which is why on 9/19/2024, U.S. Kaspersky antivirus customers received a software update facilitating the transition to UltraAV,” it stated.
“This update ensured that users would not experience a gap in protection upon Kaspersky’s exit from the market.”
The corporation claims that UltraAV’s feature set is comparable to its own, and for additional information, consumers are urged to visit UltraAV’s website and/or get in touch with their support team.