Kyiv blames Russia after hackers hijack Ukraine's air raid app to send fake nuclear and chemical attack warnings
The hoax struck minutes after loudspeakers in Lviv blared the fake warnings aloud, as Russia simultaneously claimed its own emergency app suffered a cyberattack sending fake nuclear alerts inside Russia.
Ukraine's Centre for Strategic Communications blamed Russia after the 'Air Alert' app — used by millions to warn of incoming strikes — sent fake messages claiming Kyiv faced a radiation hazard, a chemical attack, and street fighting, with loudspeakers in Lviv blaring the false warnings aloud. Air Force spokesman Yuriy Ignat confirmed the app had been hacked. The hoax struck just minutes after the longest ceasefire of the war — a six-day Kherson truce brokered by Melania Trump — expired on Sunday after Russia refused an extension.
Russia then claimed its own emergency warnings app suffered a 'massive cyberattack,' with a Ukrainian espionage group blamed for sending fake nuclear strike alerts inside Russia.
One hoax message read: 'Hi! There will be a nuclear alert across Ukraine. Don't worry, it's Oreshnik flying' — referencing Russia's hypersonic ballistic missile.
The disruption came amid a Russian missile and drone barrage that cut power to hundreds of thousands of Ukrainians across four regions, including Dnipro and Vinnytsia.
