Kaspersky has appointed Chris Norton as its new General Manager for Sub-Saharan Africa. With over three decades of IT industry experience, Norton is to drive Kaspersky’s expansion across the continent. This appointment underscores Africa’s importance for Kaspersky as a high-growth market and the company’s commitment to a forward-looking cybersecurity vision.
Kaspersky has been operating on the continent since 2009 and has placed a strong focus on Africa. In 2024, Kaspersky’s business in Africa achieved standout performance, with consumer (B2C) sales up 36% and enterprise (B2B) sales up 10% year-on-year. This contributed to an overall regional sales growth of 19%, outpacing many other regions of the world. These results emphasise Africa’s status as a strategic growth market for Kaspersky, fuelled by increasing Internet penetration, a flourishing fintech sector, and rising cybersecurity awareness.
Chris Norton joins Kaspersky with extensive experience in building technology businesses and brands across Sub-Saharan Africa, which was gained during his work for vendors such as IBM, Citrix, VMware, Servicenow, VCE, Dell EMC, and including previous regional leadership roles at Hitachi Vantara and Veeam. As General Manager for Africa, Norton, based in Johannesburg, aims to accelerate growth in both consumer and enterprise segments, strengthen Kaspersky’s channel ecosystem, and champion the brand’s cybersecurity education initiatives.
“I am honoured to take on this role at a time when Africa’s digital landscape is rapidly evolving. My focus will be on empowering our customers and partners through cutting-edge innovation, local collaboration, and education. We are proud to deliver highest-level cybersecurity solutions to all types of customers – from individuals to industrial facilities, that not only protect against today’s cyber threats but also anticipate tomorrow’s challenges. We work with African organisations to embed cybersecurity at the core of their digital transformation so that security is an enabler of innovation rather than an afterthought,” says Chris Norton.
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