Ukraine's Air Force Suspects National Air Raid Alert App Was Hacked
Ukraine's air force said on Sunday that the country's "Air Alarm" app was probably hacked, and a spokesperson confirmed this to AFP. Kyiv officials blamed Russia, and the incident came just after a local truce in Kherson ended.
Ukraine's air force said on Sunday, 2 November, that the nationwide "Air Alarm" application had probably been subjected to hostile interference. The app warns people across Ukraine in real time about the threat of Russian air strikes, and in cases such as a ballistic missile attack residents often have only minutes to reach shelter.
The air force said there was no radiation threat and urged people to stay calm and follow updates on its official channel. When AFP asked whether the app had indeed been hacked, air force spokesperson Yuriy Ignat replied that it had.
Warnings about inaccurate information
Ukraine's Centre for Countering Disinformation stated that the threat-level information currently broadcast through the app did not correspond to reality. SPRAVDI, Ukraine's Centre for Strategic Communications, blamed Russia for the hack in a post on its X account.
A separate app covering only the capital, Kyiv, is still working normally, according to the city authorities.
Link to the Kherson truce
The announcement came minutes after a truce between Moscow and Kyiv in the eastern Kherson region came to an end. The localised ceasefire, which began on Tuesday, was the longest of the war. According to the report, it ended after Russia refused to extend it.
