Ukrainian air alert app hacked with fake nuclear warnings

Users received bogus radiation and chemical attack alerts before the authorities disabled the app over a suspected cyberattack

Ukraine’s government-backed mobile air alert app sent out false warnings of nuclear and chemical attacks on Sunday night, Ukrainian media reported.

At around 11pm, the Air Alert app sent notifications urging residents to seek shelter due to a “radiation threat” and a “chemical attack.” It also warned of “street battles” in Kiev.

According to screenshots shared by Ukrainian media, one of the messages read in Russian: “Don’t worry, Oreshnik is coming,” referring to Russia’s nuclear-capable intermediate-range ballistic missile.

The Ukrainian Air Force urged residents to rely only on official sources. “The Air Alert app may have been compromised by hostile actors. There is no radiation threat!” it said in a brief statement on Telegram.

Ukraine’s Digital Transformation Ministry later confirmed that the app had been temporarily disabled following a suspected cyberattack.

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According to Russian Telegram news channel Mash, a hacker group calling itself Hitcore claimed responsibility for the intrusion. Mash reported that the hackers claimed to have deceived an employee of a Ukrainian company into giving them access to his computer.

Although Mash described the hackers as Russian, the group has not previously been linked to any known cyberattacks. Moscow has consistently denied allegations of involvement in cyberattacks.