Anti-Virus Pioneer Evgeny Kaspersky: 'I Fear the Net Will Soon Become a War Zone'

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SPIEGEL: In 2007, Estonia provoked the Russians when it moved a Soviet-era war memorial. Do you think the Kremlin was behind the subsequent cyber attack on the small country?

Kaspersky: Not the government, but enraged Russian spammers who directed special computer networks known as "botnets" against Estonia. It became the prototype of a belligerent cyber attack on a country. The attackers didn't just cripple government websites; they also sent so many spam e-mails that the entire Internet channel to Estonia quickly collapsed. The country was cut off from the world. The banking system, trade, transportation -- everything ground to a halt.

SPIEGEL: Could Russian hackers figuratively "checkmate" Germany?

Kaspersky: (laughing) We won't do that. If we did, who would buy our natural gas?

SPIEGEL: A number of computer geeks and hackers have banded together into an elusive online group known as "Anonymous," which is constantly staging fresh guerilla cyber campaigns. What are your thoughts about it?

Kaspersky: I don't think Anonymous has done any major damage yet. But I also don't support this group. Some of these people have good intentions and are merely trying to draw attention to security loopholes. But there are also those with bad intentions. Imagine you left the key in your front door. Some would call to let your know, whereas others would spread the news throughout the entire city that your front door is open. That's Anonymous; it's unpredictable.

SPIEGEL: In the future, terrorist organizations like al-Qaida could also wage cyber wars.

Kaspersky: Terrorists primarily use the Internet for communication, propaganda and recruiting new members and funding sources. So far, highly qualified cyber criminals have had enough sense to not get involved with terrorists. But, in the future, we should count on seeing cyber attacks on factories, airplanes and power plants. Just think of Die Hard 4…

SPIEGEL: …in which Bruce Willis had to fight his way through an army of young hackers.

Kaspersky: Half of the film is Hollywood fiction, but the other half is quite realistic. That really worries me.

SPIEGEL: Your 20-year-old son Ivan was recently kidnapped by a gang but liberated unharmed a few days later. How dangerous is it to be rich in Russia?

Kaspersky: More dangerous than it is in Munich, but not as dangerous as it is in Colombia, where I usually traveled in an armored car when I was there on vacation. The children of successful entrepreneurs are kidnapped in other countries, too. Thank God the Russian authorities and my security service were able to rescue Ivan. My son was partly to blame for his kidnapping: He had broadcast his address on Facebook even though I'd been warning him for years not to reveal any personal information on the Internet. Social networks like Facebook and Twitter make it easier for criminals to do their work.

SPIEGEL: Your son is studying mathematics and works as a programmer. Do you expect him to take over your company one day?

Kaspersky: If he's good, maybe so.

SPIEGEL: Silicon Valley is teeming with Russian scientists. Didn't you ever want to emigrate to America?

Kaspersky: Once, in 1992. I had just returned to Moscow from Hanover, from my first trip to the West. At the time, I could do nothing but shake my head in disgust over my country. The prosperity gap was enormous. It's become significantly smaller today. And because I travel so much, I know there are pros and cons everywhere -- whether social, economic or political.

SPIEGEL: Mr. Kaspersky, thank you for this interview.

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• Part 1: 'I Fear the Net Will Soon Become a War Zone'
• Part 2: Amateurs and Professionals
• Part 3: Sources of Future Threats