Ukraine blames Russia after its Air Alert app sent false radiation, chemical and street-fighting warnings; Moscow says its own alert app was hacked

Ukraine's officially backed Air Alert app was hacked late on Sunday 1 November, sending users false warnings of a radiation threat, a chemical attack and street fighting in Kyiv. This report draws on The Kyiv Independent, BBC News, Ukrainska Pravda, AFP (in copy published by France 24) and Al Jazeera, with additional detail from The Guardian. ## Update: Kyiv blames Russia Air Force spokesperson Yuriy Ignat confirmed to AFP that the app had been hacked, and Ukraine's Centre for Strategic Communications, SPRAVDI, blamed Russia, AFP and Al Jazeera report. Russia's emergencies ministry said its teams were working to fix a "massive cyberattack" on its own warnings app that was "enabling attackers to send false information to the public", AFP reports; it did not say who was behind it. Neither side's attribution has been independently verified. A separate app for Kyiv was working normally, Al Jazeera reports. The hacks came as the longest truce of the war, limited to the Kherson region, ended. "The ceasefire, which was in effect from October 27 to November 1, has ended," Ukraine's human rights ombudsman, Dmytro Lubinets, said, according to AFP. A Ukrainian officer told AFP he feared the fighting would be "worse than before". ## The false alerts The alerts began at about 22:47 Kyiv time (07:17 ACDT Monday), with a message declaring a radiation threat in Kyiv, the BBC reports. A minute later, a message in Russian told users not to worry because "it's Oreshnik flying", a reference to Russia's hypersonic missile, according to the BBC's translation. Further alerts warned of a chemical attack and street fighting in the capital. Sirens also sounded in several regions, The Kyiv Independent reports. "There is no radiation threat!" the Air Force said on Telegram, The Kyiv Independent and the BBC report. Regional governors told residents there was no local threat, and Vinnytsia's governor warned people not to click on a link in the messages, which could be a phishing attempt. ## Restoring the app All-clear messages were sent at 23:53, the BBC reports. At about 2am, the app's team said service was gradually being restored, with the display of targets temporarily suspended, Ukrainska Pravda and The Kyiv Independent report; it said the app does not store or use personal data. ## Atesh claim The BBC cites the Ukrainian outlet UNN as reporting that Atesh, a Ukrainian partisan group operating in Russian-held territory, claimed responsibility and sent fake nuclear alerts inside Russia. The BBC says it has not verified a screenshot published by the group, and the claim has not been independently confirmed.