Ukraine and Russia said their emergency alert apps were hacked overnight, sending false warnings to citizens about impending air raids and chemical and nuclear attacks. The warnings coincided with the expiry of a six-day local ceasefire brokered by US First Lady Melania Trump in a small area of southern Ukraine - the longest such pause in fighting since Russia's full-scale invasion in 2022.
Ukraine's public air raid system sent alerts at 2100 GMT on Sunday for Kyiv and other areas, warning of radiation, chemical attacks, and street combat. Hours later, Russian state news agency TASS quoted the Emergencies Ministry in Moscow as saying its own mobile app was also compromised.
Experts have linked previous cyber security incidents during the five-year-old war to activist hackers and intelligence agencies on both sides. In Ukraine, one alarm claimed Russia had launched a hypersonic Oreshnik missile - capable of carrying a nuclear warhead - and that a nuclear alert was declared.
Ukraine's air force stated on Telegram that the alert was fake, noting that official communications must be in the Ukrainian language. It added, "There is no radiation threat!
Stay calm and follow our updates!" All-clear messages followed, and Ukraine's Ministry for Digital Transformation launched an investigation. Ukraine suffers from a critical lack of air defenses, particularly US-made Patriot interceptors.
The US announced a $2.1 billion deal on Friday to supply 500 interceptors, but officials say delivery could take years. On the streets of Kyiv, residents downplayed the hack.
Artem Pyndyk, 37, said he was briefly surprised but realized it was a hoax. "This didn't trigger the reaction they expected," he said.
Oksana Vostrykova, 48, added, "I am calm; I immediately understood it might be a false message." Meanwhile, the pro-Ukrainian hacking group Atesh posted a screenshot of the Russian alert on Telegram.
The fake message told Russians that nuclear warheads had been launched against all regions and advised people to stock three weeks of food and shelter in cellars. The Russian ministry stated its experts are working to restore systems and urged the public to trust only official sources.