Ukraine’s Air Alert app was warn of radiation, chemicals, and street fighting in Kyiv. None of it was real
Some warnings came in Russian and invoked the Oreshnik missile. The Air Force blamed likely enemy interference.
Ukraine's Air Alert application, which serves as the primary air raid warning system for citizens, was targeted on November 1 by those outside its system. The malicious actors transmitted fabricated threat notifications to the users’ mobile devices, as confirmed by the app developers. The Ukrainian Air Force declared the absence of any radiation hazard and attributed the app's possible compromise to enemy influence.
The developers promptly suspended the application overnight before embarking on its restoration. The fabricated alerts exploited a persistent fear Russia has been cultivating. Russia has fired the Oreshnik, an intermediate-range ballistic missile, at Ukraine three times, with the most recent attack occurring on May 24 near Bila Tserkva, a day following Ukraine's warning of a potential strike, with Kyiv among the potential targets.
In September, a Russian lawmaker even threatened a fourth launch. Users of the application received a series of alerts around 10:45 PM, warning of chemical and radiation threats, as well as street fighting in Kyiv. Some messages were in Russian and contained a link to a Telegram channel. One such message read: "Hi! There will be a nuclear alert across Ukraine now!
Don't worry, the Oreshnik missile is on its way." Shortly after 11:00 PM, the Air Force advised Ukrainians to remain calm and follow its official channel for updates. The app's team acknowledged the unauthorized interference and disabled push notifications, temporarily suspending the app. They emphasized that the app does not store personal data, thus posing no risk to users.
They urged individuals not to open links from suspicious notifications. By 2:00 AM on November 2, the developers announced the gradual restoration of the app after the cyberattack. The map once again displayed yellow and red danger levels, covering drone attacks and significant drone or missile strikes, with push alerts functioning again.
However, the display of targets on the map remained suspended. Meanwhile, sirens and other warning systems continued to operate, as confirmed by Ukraine’s Digital Transformation Ministry. The ministry advised people to activate emergency alerts on their phones and to rely solely on official Air Force channels. The capital, Kyiv, reported that alerts in the Kyiv Digital city app functioned normally.
Ajax Systems, which developed the app in 2022 at the initiative of IT company Stfalcon, with the ministry's support, constructed the application.
Written by urgent.news from Euromaidan Press's reporting — not their text. Machine-written — may contain errors; check the original before relying on it.
