Francisco-Backed Sandvine Cancels Belarus Deal, Citing Abuses

Sandvine, the technology company backed by private equity firm Francisco Partners, canceled a deal with Belarus, saying the government used its technology to violate human rights. From a report: The company’s technology, which is used to filter and manage internet networks, was used by a state-run internet agency in Belarus to block thousands of websites in the country amid nationwide protests over a disputed election, Bloomberg reported on Aug. 28. Sandvine said in a statement on Tuesday that a preliminary investigation determined that “custom code” was inserted into its products “to thwart the free flow of information during the Belarus election.” The Tuesday announcement comes days after Sandvine was criticized by many including politicians .