Ukraine’s Air Force said the country’s Air Alert application was apparently subjected to hostile interference on Sunday after users received a series of false warnings, including an alert claiming that Kyiv faced a radiation threat.
The first messages appeared at approximately 22:47 local time, according to the reported alerts. They were followed by notifications in Ukrainian and Russian warning of a nuclear alert across Ukraine, a chemical attack in Kyiv and street fighting in the capital. Each alert was later followed by a separate all-clear message.
The Air Force said there was no radiation threat and advised people to remain calm and follow updates through its official Telegram channel. Ukraine’s Central Intelligence Agency also reported a failure involving the application and urged the public to consult other official sources about possible air strikes.
The agency said the radiation warning was also broadcast through loudspeakers in the Lviv region, while reiterating that no radiation hazard existed. It advised residents to keep smartphone notifications enabled, pay attention to sirens and rely only on official information.
Natalya Zabolotna, governor of Vinnytsia Oblast, said the application had been targeted in a cyberattack and warned users not to click on the link included in the message.
The Air Alert app is supported by Ukraine’s Ministry of Digital Transformation and provides users with immediate notifications about the start and end of defence alerts.
Sources: BBC News World.