Russian and Ukrainian citizens received a fake emergency alert in early November about an imminent nuclear threat following a potential cyber attack on official government mobile apps.
In Ukraine, citizens received false warnings of radiation hazards, chemical attacks, and street fighting, and a fabricated nuclear threat allegedly involving Russia’s nuclear-capable Oreshnik missile.
“Hi! There will be a nuclear threat across Ukraine. Do not worry, the Oreshnik is incoming,” reads the emergency alert translated from Russian.
Russia has previously used the Oreshnik intermediate-range hypersonic missile to hit Kyiv, Dnipro, and Lviv with kinetic projectiles. However, the missiles reportedly carried inert warheads without conventional or nuclear payloads. Western governments have warned Moscow against hitting Ukraine with nuclear weapons to avoid escalating the nearly five-year conflict.
Cyber attack results in fabricated emergency alert in Ukraine, Russia
The emergency alerts followed a sustained air campaign by Russia on an aid distribution center in Komyshuvakha, in the southern Zaporizhzhia region, that killed more than two dozen people.
The cyberattack forced Ukrainian authorities to temporarily suspend the Air Alert mobile application. The government also told Ukrainians to monitor emergency alerts on its official social media pages. Ukraine’s officials also assured civilians that the cyber attack had no effect on its security operations or air defenses.
Meanwhile, Ukrainian authorities have urged citizens to remain calm, assuring them there was no radiation threat.
“There is no radiation threat! Stay calm and follow our updates on our channel!”
Some Ukrainians mocked the fabricated nuclear alert by posting photos of themselves relaxing with their pets and AI-generated memes.
A similar obscenity-filled warning purporting to originate from the Russian Ministry of Civil Defense and Emergencies warned Russians that Ukrainian P1-Suns drones armed with nuclear warheads were heading their way and urged them to shelter for three weeks.
In response, Russia suspended its Emergency Situations app and said it was working to restore normal operations. It also assured citizens that its emergency alert systems continued to operate normally through SMS, media broadcasts, and sirens located across the country.
Neither hack seems to have caused widespread public panic in either Ukraine or Russia. The casual, and even foul, language also suggests the cyberattacks were carried out by hacktivist groups with support from both governments’ intelligence agencies.
Ukraine carries out retaliatory cyber attack on Russian emergency alert systems.
Ukraine has attributed the emergency alert system hack to Russia, saying the message was in Russian, while authorities usually communicate in Ukrainian. However, the alert also appeared in Ukrainian and English, though with grammatical errors.
Hitcore, a Russian hacking group with close ties to the Kremlin, has claimed responsibility for the cyber attack on Ukrainian emergency alert systems. However, Ukraine points a direct finger at Moscow for the cyber attack on its air raid warning system. Russia has not taken credit for the cyber attack.
“The air alert app appears to have been subjected to enemy influence,” Ukrainian authorities stated.
Meanwhile, Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy has confirmed that Ukraine carried out the retaliatory cyber attack on Russia’s emergency alert systems.
Emergency alert systems hacked in the past
Hackers have previously compromised emergency alert systems to send fabricated warnings about air raids, chemical spills, nuclear threats, and even adverse weather, resulting in public hysteria and service disruption.
In June 2026, hackers breached Brazil’s emergency alert system to send millions of highest-level alerts from the country’s Civil Defense platform, warning citizens about severe weather events.
In December 2025, a ransomware attack also hit Crisis24’s OnSolve CodeRED emergency alert system, disrupting critical public services across numerous states in the United States.
In 2023, Israel’s Red Alert mobile application, which warns about incoming rocket attacks, experienced a cyber attack, sending notifications about a nuclear threat. In the same year, Russia’s radio stations were compromised to send false air raid alerts.
