Russian and Ukrainian alert apps hacked to send false nuclear threat warnings

Russia's Ministry of Emergency Situations (EMERCOM) reported in the early hours of November 2 that its mobile app had suffered a “massive cyberattack” and that false information about a supposed threat had been sent to users, according to the state news agency TASS as cited by the German news agency DPA. The ministry added that it was working to close the vulnerability and restore the service, according to Rambler.

At around 02:45, the false messages claimed that nuclear warheads had been launched at every region of Russia and urged people to buy food for three weeks and take shelter in basements, according to Rambler. The outlet found them in the app, on official channels of EMERCOM and its alert system, and on the pages of regional operations centers in at least nine regions, including Moscow, Saint Petersburg, Belgorod and Bashkortostan. Regional media urged residents not to panic.

Hours earlier, on the night of November 1, users of the Ukrainian “Air Alert” app received false warnings of a nuclear, chemical and radiological threat, according to DPA and UNN. The Ukrainian Air Force said the app had “likely been compromised by the enemy” and that there was no radiological threat, and the Kyiv administration said the city's alert system was working normally.

Neither government has publicly attributed the attacks to a specific group. The pro-Ukrainian partisan movement ATESH claims the attack on the Russian app, according to UNN, which notes that there is no independent confirmation; the Russian group Hitcore claims the one on the Ukrainian app, according to Rambler. It is not known how many users received the warnings, how the attackers gained access or whether the Russian service has been restored.