Global cybersecurity company Kaspersky recently launched an eSIM store, enabling holidaymakers and other travellers to purchase roaming mobile data across 150 countries and regions.
Kaspersky eSIM Store:
Huh, that Kaspersky?
Kaspersky eSIM Store.
Yes. According to Kaspersky, the eSIM Store is a response to a travel boom, the increasing reliance on eSIM for roaming data (especially for the Asia-Pacific region), and the growing wave of cybercriminals riding on innocent eSIM purchases as a method to conduct phishing attacks and scams.
Kaspersky researchers said that cybercriminals create phishing websites that imitate popular telcos in our region, using the convenience of eSIM purchases to trick users into entering sensitive data (such as phone numbers). These predators are typically hankering after credentials, like login details and security questions, in order to access a victim’s financial accounts (banking apps, crypto wallets, e-wallets, etc.) on their phones.
While the Kaspersky eSIM Store may be one of many such eSIM providers that let you grab your roaming data remotely (e.g. Airalo, Changi Recommends, and the gajillion listings you can find in e-commerce platforms by official telcos and MVNOs), Kaspersky’s sell is the added assurance and security that your holiday eSIMs are legit.
A quick glance at Kaspersky’s fair use policy reveals that the eSIMs are supplied by BNESIM, an eSIM provider.
How do I buy a travel roaming eSIM from the Kaspersky eSIM store?
It’s just like most other eSIM providers for roaming data, and installing the eSIM requires a phone with eSIM support.
After going to the store via your Internet browser or via its app on your phone, the platform will prompt you to create an account first. Once that’s complete, you’ll be presented with options to buy roaming data for one destination or a region.
The variety of roaming data plans can vary between destinations. For example, roaming data for Singapore doesn’t have any that exceeds a 20GB bundle, but Thailand’s roaming data can go up to 100GB. There are also options to choose between time-limited and non-expiring data bundles.
If you are using the app version, purchased eSIMs will appear in another tab within the app, allowing users to install directly and minimising the need to fiddle about your phone’s settings to get the data up and running.
Notably, the app doesn’t display prices in Singapore Dollars or United States Dollars. It defaults to the Euro, with the option to pick the Russian Ruble and some Middle Eastern currencies.