The US imposes sanctions on 12 Kaspersky Lab executives for their work in the Russian technology sector

The Treasury Department’s Office of Foreign Assets Control (OFAC) has imposed sanctions on twelve Kaspersky Lab executives for their activities in the Russian technology sector.

These sanctions were imposed after the Biden administration announced yesterday a ban on the sale and updates of Kaspersky’s antivirus software in the US, starting in July, due to potential cybersecurity threats to national security.

In addition, the Department of Commerce placed AO Kaspersky Lab and OOO Kaspersky Group (Russia) and Kaspersky Labs Limited (United Kingdom) on the Entity List, preventing any U.S. company from doing business with them.

“All of the following individuals have been designated pursuant to EO 14024 to operate in the technology sector of the economy of the Russian Federation,” OFAC said in a statement.

OFAC today announced sanctions against twelve Kaspersky Lab employees in management positions. The twelve punished Kaspersky employees and their positions are:

• Andrei Gennadyevich Tikhonov (Tikhonov) – Member of the Management Board and Financial Director.
• Daniil Sergeevich Borshchev (Borshchev) – Member of the Management Board and Deputy General Director for Strategy and Economics
• Andrei Anatolyevich Efremov (Efremov) – Member of the Management Board and Director of Business Development (CBDO)
• Igor Gennadyevich Chekunov (Chekunov) – Member of the Management Board, Director of Legal Affairs (CLO).
• Andrey Petrovich Dukhvalov (Dukhvalov) – Vice President and Director of Future Technologies
• Andrei Anatolyevich Suvorov (Suvorov) – Head of the Business Unit for Kaspersky Operating Systems
• Denis Vladimirovich Zenkin (Zenkin) – head of corporate communications
• Marina Mikhaylovna Alekseeva (Alekseeva) – Human Resources (HR) Director (CHRO)
• Mikhail Yuryevich Gerber (Gerber) – Executive Vice President for Consumer Business
• Anton Mikhailovich Ivanov (Ivanov) – Chief Technology Officer (CTO)
• Kirill Aleksandrovich Astrakhan (Astrakhan) – Executive Vice President for Corporate Business
• Anna Vladimirovna Kulashova (Kulashova) – Managing Director for Russia and the Commonwealth of Independent States (CIS)

Although many of these members report directly to CEO Eugene Kaspersky, the U.S. government says it has not imposed sanctions on Kaspersky Lab, its parent or subsidiary companies, or its CEO.

The Treasury Department says the workers are subject to sanctions under Executive Order 14024, which states that those determined to work in the Russian Federation’s technology sector may be subject to sanctions.

“operate or operate in the technology sector or the defense and related materials sector of the economy of the Russian Federation or in any other sector of the economy of the Russian Federation, as determined by the Secretary of the Treasury in consultation with the Secretary of State,” the executive order reads.

The assets of those subject to sanctions in the US have been frozen and they no longer have access to them until the sanctions are lifted.

BleepingComputer has reached out to Kaspersky for a statement regarding these sanctions and will update the article if we hear back.