The international volunteer intelligence community InformNapalm has published an investigation revealing a close collaboration between the Russian antivirus maker Kaspersky Lab and the Russian UAV manufacturer Albatross in the development of military drones, which extends beyond conventional software development, delving into the realm of neural networks for military applications.
Kaspersky Lab has long been suspected of its controversial ties to the Russian intelligence agencies, however, despite national security concerns raised by the US government over the years, Kaspersky Lab has managed to evade significant international sanctions. At present, only Ukraine and Poland have imposed restrictions on Kaspersky Lab and its founder Evgeniy Kaspersky.
According to leaked documents, Kaspersky Lab's involvement in the development of military drones goes beyond mere software provision. The company's neural network solutions have been integrated into Albatross drones, including the flagship Albatross M5 fixed-wing drones and industrial quadcopters. This collaboration extends to projects such as the Kaspersky Antidrone system, aimed at countering unauthorized drone activities. This is a complex set of radars and video equipment that records drone flights over a certain territory, operating with the help of a neural network.
The report says that two developers of the Albatross neural network are also employees of Kaspersky Lab, where they are also working on the Antidrone project. Kaspersky’s official partner in the development of neural networks and anti-drone systems is the same Albatross.
While the antiivirus maker does not disclose most of the Antidrone system customers, the hacktivists obtained a partial list of the covered facilities. These include Chelyabinsk Tube Rolling Plant, a facility that produced pipes for the Nord Stream gas pipeline, Norilsk Nickel, one of the largest metallurgical plants in Russia, and the Mozyr Oil Refinery, an oil refinery in Belarus.
While the company maintains that its products are intended solely for civilian use, evidence suggests otherwise, with Albatross drones equipped with Kaspersky technology actively deployed in Ukraine.
