Ukraine and Russia Trade Accusations Over Alert App Hacks
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Ukraine and Russia accused each other of hacking their emergency alert systems on Monday, hours after the longest truce of the war expired.
Ukraine’s Diia app said its air raid alert function was compromised after an unfounded radiation warning was issued for Kyiv, Brovary and Boryspil at around 2:30 a.m. The air force moved quickly to contradict it: “There is no radiation threat,” it said in a message. The SPRAVDI pro-Ukrainian hacker group said it had gained temporary control of the alert system for about 20 minutes to expose a vulnerability in the Russian system. A Diia official said Russia had hacked the app.
Russia’s Emergencies Ministry said its own app was hit by a “massive cyberattack” that posted “false information,” hours after a baseless radiation alert had been spread. Moscow did not immediately say who was responsible.
The recriminations followed the end on Sunday of a 72-hour truce in the Kherson region, brokered by US First Lady Melania Trump, which began early Tuesday and allowed a humanitarian mission into the Russian-occupied town of Oleshky, from which residents were evacuated to Ukrainian-held territory. It was the longest lull in fighting since the war began in February 2022.
Ukraine’s parliamentary human rights commissioner, Dmytro Lubinets, called the truce “an important step in our joint humanitarian efforts” with Russia, and said Moscow had refused the offer of an extension.
Ukraine’s President Volodymyr Zelensky signalled on Sunday that Kyiv could halt attacks on Russian oil refineries, and said US-mediated talks are expected to resume this month after being suspended following the US and Israeli strikes on Iran in February.
The exchanges underscored how the war has extended into digital infrastructure, with both sides weaponising the civil-defence apps civilians rely on for warnings. Neither government provided technical evidence to support its accusations.