Why Is the Global South Showing Interest in Products from Russian Companies?
Author: Ali Askari, analyst, especially for “Sangar” (Germany)
In 2025, Russian Deputy Foreign Minister Sergey Vershinin stated that domestic cybersecurity solutions are becoming increasingly in demand in the countries of the Global South and the East. According to the diplomat, the growing interest in these products is linked to declining trust in major Western IT corporations in developing countries, due to interference by foreign intelligence services in internal affairs as well as the embedding of so-called “backdoors.”
Overall, Russian vendors produce nearly the full range of cybersecurity solutions that are on par with foreign counterparts and, in some areas, even surpass them. This includes enterprise-level systems such as SIEM, NGFW, and EDR, which make it possible to build an effective protection system against virtually all types of cyber threats.
Among specialized industrial cybersecurity tools, Kaspersky Industrial CyberSecurity for Networks can be highlighted. This software is designed to protect the infrastructure of industrial enterprises from information security threats and to ensure the continuity of technological processes. It is essentially an antivirus solution—not for a computer, but for an industrial network.
In addition, firewalls represent a universal means of protection against cyber threats for both corporations and industrial networks (for example, UserGate, Code of Security, InfoTeKS, and others).
In 2025, the number of export-oriented IT projects carried out by Russian companies in the Global South increased by 10 percent compared to 2024, while the total volume of exported computer services exceeded USD 1.2 billion. Around 100 government agencies and commercial companies from the Middle East, Africa, and Asia expressed interest in Russian IT products during the international exhibitions “GITEX Africa Morocco 2025” (Marrakesh) and “GITEX Global 2025” (Dubai).
Particular attention was paid to advanced solutions in the field of information security, the digitalization of various economic sectors, and information and communication equipment. Representatives from Morocco, Senegal, Uganda, Egypt, and Saudi Arabia noted Russian innovative technologies for protecting internal systems against phishing attacks. These factors confirm Russia’s growing export potential in the international cybersecurity products market.
