Russian Emergencies Ministry app hacked: users receive false notifications about a nuclear strike

The mobile app of Russia's Emergencies Ministry came under cyberattack on the evening of 1 November, and in the night of 2 November its users received false notifications about a nuclear strike. The messages said that nuclear warheads had been launched at all regions of the country.

The attackers managed to send false information to the public through the app. The same texts appeared in the channels of regional Emergencies Ministry and RSChS offices in the Max messenger. At about 02:45, according to the Ukrainian outlet my.ua, identical messages appeared in the regional channels and in the app.

The fake messages, as my.ua writes, claimed that warheads had been launched on P1-SUN carriers. The notifications contained obscene language, and told Russians to stock up on food for three weeks and hide in basements. According to my.ua, the messages made many people believe the worst.

The previous evening, on 1 November, the Ukrainian app Air Alert sent users false messages about radiation and chemical danger, street fighting in Kyiv and an attack with an Oreshnik missile. One of them was in Russian: "Hi! There will be a nuclear alert across all of Ukraine now. Don't worry, Oreshnik is flying in."

Ukrainian authorities reported a hack. The app's team spoke of unauthorised interference by outsiders and temporarily suspended the service. In the night of 2 November, it began to be gradually restored.

According to a post on Telegram, responsibility for hacking the Ukrainian app was claimed by the Russian hacker group Hitcore. There is no independent confirmation of this.

Russia's Emergencies Ministry said that specialists are taking measures to restore normal operation of the app, and that the hack did not affect and cannot affect the public warning system, which is operating normally.

Ukraine's Air Force said that the app "came under hostile influence" and assured that there is no radiation threat. Ukraine's State Emergency Service said that the national warning system is working normally. The app's team said that it does not store personal data and asked users not to follow links from suspicious notifications.

In the Lviv region, because of the failure, a radiation danger signal sounded from street loudspeakers.