Ukraine Warupdated 53m ago2 min read
MapUkraine Air Alarm App Hacked, Sends False Radiation, Chemical, and Street-Fighting Alerts
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Ukrainian Air Alarm app likely hacked, showing false radiation threat in Kyiv. Officials say there was no radiation threat and urge residents to stay calm.
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6 outlets told this the same way.
False alerts in Kyiv
The Ukrainian Air Force said the Air Alarm application was apparently hacked on Sunday and briefly told users that Kyiv was subject to a radiation threat, before sending all clear messages to phones connected to the earlier alerts.
“The Air Alarm application has probably been subjected to hostile interference. There is no radiation threat!”
The Air Force message on Telegram said, "The Air Alarm application has probably been subjected to hostile interference. There is no radiation threat! Stay calm and follow our updates on our channel."
The messages, in Ukrainian, began at approximately 22:47 (20:47 GMT) with the first reading "Radiation threat. Radiation threat declared in Kyiv," followed by a Russian alert at 22:48 that said, "Hi! There will be a nuclear alert across Ukraine. Don't worry, it's Oreshnik flying".
A third alert at 22:49 warned "Chemical threat. There is a threat of a chemical attack on Kyiv. Don't go outside," and a fourth at 22:49 said "Street fighting threat. Street fighting is taking place in Kyiv. Don't go outside."
Officials urge other sources
The Ukrainian Central Intelligence Agency said on Telegram that there had been a failure in the app and urged people to use other sources of information to clarify the situation regarding the threat of air strikes. The Air Force message also directed residents to follow official updates, and the Ukrainian Central Intelligence Agency added that due to the Air Alert application, the Radiation Hazard signal was played on loudspeaker devices in the Lviv region.
The governor of Vinnytsia oblast, Natalya Zabolotna, said there had been a cyberattack on the Air Alert app and posted a warning on Telegram not click on the link in the message. The BNO News account said the false alerts appeared Sunday on the Air Raid Alert app and that the air force told residents to "remain calm" while directing them to follow updates on its official channel.
Wider disruption and response
The suspected hack triggered false warnings beyond Kyiv, with the BNO News account describing alerts for Kharkiv about a nuclear hazard, a chemical hazard and street fighting, and alerts for Zaporizhzhia about street fighting and artillery fire. The BNO News report also said there were reports that the false alerts triggered sirens, although it was not immediately clear how widely those activations occurred.
The Diari ARA account said the military warned that the Barcelona Air Alert application suffered a cyberattack and that Ukrainians received three consecutive alarm messages shortly before eleven at night. The Diari ARA account quoted the Ukrainian Air Force warning that the application "has likely been compromised," clarifying that "there is no radioactive risk," and urging the population to remain calm and follow instructions only through this channel.