Kaspersky Lab stays quiet on kidnapping of founder?s son

Reports surfaced in Russia today that the son of Eugene Kaspersky, chief executive of antivirus company Kaspersky Lab, has been kidnapped.

The Moscow-based company is one of Russia’s stand-out successes when it comes to technology. The kidnapping could draw attention to the business risks related to crime in Russia — risks that admittedly exist in any country — at a time when the Russian government is trying to establish a high-tech industry in Russia. It reminds me of our story entitled, “Investing in Russia? Better hire bodyguards and hunker down.” The consequence of such a kidnapping is that it could chill business creation in Russia, since no executive wants to go to a place with such personal risks. Of course, you could say the same thing about a lot of countries. But this kind of international story will likely keep the topic in the news.

A spokesperson for the company declined comment to Cnet. Ivan Kaspersky, 20, the youngest son of the company founder, was reportedly kidnapped on Tuesday on his way to work at InfoWatch. That company is owned by his mother, according to Pravda. Someone reportedly called and asked for a $4.3 million ransom.

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