Russia’s emergency warnings app was hit by a “massive cyberattack” on Monday, shortly after Ukraine reported a hack, coinciding with the end of a temporary truce. The app, designed to alert the public about drone attacks, was compromised with “false information,” according to Russia’s emergencies ministry.
Earlier, Ukrainian officials suspected their air raid alert system had been infiltrated after bogus radiation threat alerts were sent through the app. This cyber conflict unfolded as the longest ceasefire of the war, which had been limited to the eastern Kherson region, concluded on Sunday following Russia’s refusal to extend it.
Moscow did not identify the attackers, while Ukraine’s Centre for Strategic Communications, SPRAVDI, accused Russian hackers. The ceasefire, resulting from US-led negotiations and initiated on October 27, allowed humanitarian efforts in Oleshky but has since fallen apart, as confirmed by Ukraine’s Commissioner for Human Rights, Dmytro Lubinets.
US mediation talks between Russia and Ukraine are expected to resume this month after a prolonged hiatus following US and Israeli strikes on Iran in February. Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky indicated that military actions against Russian oil refineries could cease if the US provided Patriot interceptor missiles.
Kherson’s regional governor, Oleksandr Prokudin, urged locals to remain cautious now that the truce is over, advising immediate responses to attack warnings. The Ukrainian Air Force acknowledged that its alerts had been interfered with but assured that there is no radiation threat.
The cyberattacks coincide with increased military activity; Russian forces are reportedly regrouping across the Dnipro river. Meanwhile, further exchanges of strikes occurred on Sunday, with Russia claiming a drone attack on a Moscow-area industrial facility and Ukraine targeting Russian oil sites.
Zelensky reiterated to Trump that if Ukraine is to halt attacks on Russian refineries, Russia must cease its strikes on Ukrainian energy infrastructure or supply Ukraine with Patriot missiles.
Ukraine’s energy ministry reported renewed power outages nationwide, including in Kyiv, as a result of these ongoing Russian assaults.
