Hackers Attack Emergency Alert Systems in Ukraine and Russia, Sending Fake Nuclear Attack

Hackers targeted government mobile applications used to issue emergency alerts in Ukraine and Russia, sending citizens fake warnings about air raids, chemical attacks and a nuclear strike, triggering panic in both countries. Authorities have confirmed the cyberattack and urged the public to rely only on information released through official channels. According to Reuters, the incidents occurred overnight, when residents in Ukraine and Russia received various emergency warnings through mobile applications. In Ukraine, one fake alert claimed that Russia had launched an Oreshnik hypersonic missile, which is capable of carrying nuclear warheads. Nuclear threat warnings were also issued across the country.

In a statement posted on Telegram, Ukraine’s Air Force said preliminary information indicated that its Air Raid Alert app had been hacked by an enemy. According to the Air Force, the fake messages were sent in Russian, although all official announcements in Ukraine are issued in Ukrainian. Ukraine’s Air Force assured citizens that there was no radiation threat in the country. It urged people to remain calm and follow the latest updates posted on its official Telegram channel. Messages subsequently declaring the threat from all the fake alerts to be over were also issued.

Ukraine’s Ministry of Digital Transformation said the affected mobile application had been temporarily suspended. However, other public warning systems were operating normally, and air raid sirens remained active. Residents of Kyiv did not appear particularly frightened or concerned by the cyberattack. Artem Pyandyk, a 37-year-old businessman, said he was briefly surprised when he saw the fake messages but soon realized they might be false. He said the incident had not triggered the kind of public reaction the hackers had expected. He added that the incident could be regarded as a joke, but it was also worrying that hackers had managed to gain access to the application and take control of it.

Meanwhile, Russia’s state news agency TASS, citing the Ministry of Emergency Situations, reported that the country’s emergency alert mobile application had also been targeted in a cyberattack. Fake messages about a nuclear war and other threats were sent to users. The pro-Ukraine hacker group known as Atesh shared a screenshot on its Telegram channel early Monday showing a fake alert sent through the Russian application. The group claimed that the Ministry of Emergency Situations’ app had been hacked. The message sent by the hackers claimed that nuclear warheads had been launched towards all Russian regions. It instructed residents to stockpile food for three weeks and prepare to take shelter in the basements of their homes. The fake alert also included insulting language directed at various Russian regions and did not resemble an official government announcement.

Russia’s Ministry of Emergency Situations confirmed the incident but said the affected application was not the primary channel for issuing public warnings, but rather an additional source of information. The ministry said its specialists were working to restore the application to normal operation. It urged citizens to remain calm and trust only information provided through official channels. According to the ministry, verified updates were available on its official website and social media accounts. Reuters reported that it remains unclear which groups were behind the hacking of the applications in the two countries. Cybersecurity experts have previously suggested that intelligence agencies and activist hackers on both sides could be involved in similar incidents during the ongoing war between Russia and Ukraine.