KYIV – Emergency alert apps in Ukraine and Russia were hit by cyberattacks late Sunday, officials in both countries said. In Ukraine, residents in Kyiv received bogus warnings claiming that dangerous levels of nuclear radiation had been detected in the capital.
Ukraine’s air raid alert channel said in a late-Sunday Telegram post that “unauthorized parties” had disrupted the messaging app, forcing a temporary suspension. The channel also cautioned users against opening links included in “suspicious notifications.”
Ukrainian authorities said the service was restored overnight. The app is widely used by Ukrainians seeking shelter from daily Russian missile and drone attacks. The fraudulent alerts falsely reported elevated radiation levels, a chemical threat and public unrest in Kyiv. They appeared in English — with spelling and grammar errors — as well as in a combination of Russian and Ukrainian.
One fake message referred to the hacking group Hitcore. Mash, a Russian Telegram channel with ties to the security services, said it had contacted Hitcore representatives, who allegedly claimed responsibility for the incident. That assertion could not be independently confirmed.
Ukraine’s state-run Center for Countering Disinformation confirmed the breach and advised people to follow emergency updates on social media. It also urged residents to rely on physical warning systems while officials worked to contain the cyberattack.
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Russian officials said Monday that hackers had also issued fraudulent emergency notifications after accessing the mobile application operated by Russia’s Emergency Ministry.
The ministry did not identify those responsible. In a statement, it said Russia’s broader public warning network remained operational. The mobile application is a supplementary service, officials said, alongside SMS notifications, media broadcasts and municipal sirens and loudspeakers.
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