Dragon Capital LLC (Kyiv, Ukrainian office of Dragon Capital) sees hidden motives behind the searches of its premises by the Ukrainian Security Service (SBU).
“In our opinion, based on the list of tasks of the Security Service, listed in Article 2 of the law on the SBU, the intelligence service had to disclose information about qualifying the software as spyware immediately after the relevant expert conclusion was made, specifically with a view to preventing its further dissemination and use. Unfortunately, these [the SBU searches] look like an attempt to justify their inaction and selective attitude to some companies… and give the impression of the SBU having a motive other than the fight against crime,” Dragon Capital wrote on its Facebook page immediately after the briefing of SBU Chief of Staff Oleksandr Tkachuk in Kyiv on April 27.
Dragon Capital also notes that the protection of the company’s local network is constructed in such a way that the software in question, if used, would not be able to transmit information online without authorization.
As reported, on April 26, the SBU held searches at the premises of Dragon Capital LLC.
According to the company, raids in the office of Dragon Capital LLC (Kyiv, the Ukrainian structure of Dragon Capital) were linked to an employee work hours tracking software declared the spy software.
“As it turned out that the software that Dragon Capital LLC officially bought in 2015 from Ukraine’s Stakhanovets PRO LLC, the copywriter of the software, and planned to use as the employee work hours tracking system at Dragon Capital LLC was declared “a special technical device for obtaining confidential information” on the basis of an expert conclusion drawn up during criminal proceedings,” the company said.
Officers of the Security Service of Ukraine (SBU) tried to seize all computers of the company, which would almost paralyze the operations of Dragon Capital as a securities trader and a depository institution, the company added.
“Thanks to the reaction of Ukrainian Prime Minister Volodymyr Groysman, other public figures and mass media later the SBU officers raided the office without violating legislation and pressure. The company is operating in a usual mode now,” the company said.
According to the unified register of companies and individual businessmen, Stakhanovets PRO LLC was registered in Dnipro. Its founders are Stakh Staff Monitoring Solutions Limited (Cyprus), the ultimate beneficiaries of which are citizen of Russia Igor Borovikov and two citizens of Ukraine Serhiy Shamshyn and Mykhailo Yakhymovych.
Dragon Capital, founded in 2000, is a large investment company in Ukraine. It works in the field of direct investment and financial services, provides a full range of investment banking and brokerage services for corporate and private clients.
