Germany’s cyber-security authority has warned against using anti-virus software from Russian headquartered company Kaspersky.
The Federal Office for Information Security (BSI) issued the statement in light of the conflict in Ukraine.
Russian information-technology businesses could be spied on or forced to launch cyber-attacks, it said.
Kaspersky told BBC News the warning had been “made on political grounds” and it had no ties to the Russian government.
‘Offensive operations’
The BSI made no allegation of current problems with Kaspersky’s products but said the conflict in Ukraine and Russian threats against the European Union, Nato and Germany brought with them the risk of cyber-attacks.
“A Russian IT manufacturer can carry out offensive operations itself, be forced against its will to attack target systems, or be spied on as a victim of a cyber operation without its knowledge or as a tool for attacks against its own customers,” the warning said.