Ukraine’s public air-raid alert app was hacked on Sunday night, briefly sending users false warnings of radiation, a chemical attack and street fighting, the country’s air force said, stressing that there was no radiation threat.
The false warnings began at about 22:47 local time (20:47 GMT), the BBC reported, with a message declaring a radiation threat in Kyiv. A message in Russian followed, saying a nuclear alert would be issued across Ukraine and mentioning Russia’s Oreshnik missile, and further warnings at 22:49 spoke of a chemical attack and street fighting in the capital.
The air force said on Telegram: “The air alert app appears to have been subjected to enemy influence. There is no radiation threat! Stay calm and follow our updates on our channel!”
All-clear messages followed at about 23:53, and Ukraine’s Ministry for Digital Transformation said the app was not in operation, while other alerting channels and air-raid sirens were still working.
The incident came minutes before a local ceasefire in the Kherson region ended at 23:00 on Sunday.
In a separate development reported early on Monday, Russia’s emergencies ministry said its own app had been hit by a massive cyberattack that spread false information to the public, state news agency TASS reported; it was not immediately clear whether the two incidents were linked.
Officials urged people to stay calm and rely on official channels.
The image above is illustrative only and is not a photo of the incident described.
Source: Reuters, via https://www.asiaone.com/world/ukraine-says-public-air-raid-alert-app-sent-false-alerts-after-being-hacked
