Ukraine's official air raid notification application was compromised on Sunday evening, temporarily sending false emergency warnings to users claiming that the capital city of Kyiv was facing a radiation threat, according to military and intelligence officials.
The Ukrainian Air Force addressed the breach in a message on Telegram, writing: "The Air Alarm application has probably been subjected to hostile interference. There is no radiation threat! Stay calm and follow our updates on our channel." The Ukrainian Central Intelligence Agency also issued a Telegram statement confirming a failure in the application, urging the public to rely on alternative channels to verify information regarding potential air strikes.
The rogue notifications began arriving on users' mobile devices at approximately 22:47 (20:47 GMT). The first message, issued in Ukrainian, declared: "Radiation threat. Radiation threat declared in Kyiv." A minute later, at 22:48, a second alert written in Russian stated: "Hi! There will be a nuclear alert across Ukraine. Don't worry, it's Oreshnik flying".
Subsequent warnings quickly followed in Ukrainian. At 22:49, a notification warned of a "Chemical threat. There is a threat of a chemical attack on Kyiv. Don't go outside." Simultaneously at 22:49, a fourth message warned of a "Street fighting threat. Street fighting is taking place in Kyiv. Don't go outside." Following the string of false alarms, individual all-clear notifications were pushed to users' phones, systematically cancelling each of the previous alerts.
The technical disruption also triggered physical emergency systems outside the capital. The Ukrainian Central Intelligence Agency reported in a separate post that the application's failure caused a Radiation Hazard siren to sound over municipal loudspeaker devices in the Lviv region. Officials emphasized that no actual radiation danger existed in the area. Intelligence authorities advised citizens to keep smartphone notifications enabled, listen for physical sirens, and rely strictly on official sources for safety instructions.
Natalya Zabolotna, the governor of Vinnytsia oblast, confirmed that a cyberattack had targeted the Air Alert mobile platform and warned social media followers on Telegram not to click any links embedded in the false alert messages.
Ukrainians rely heavily on the Air Alert app to navigate ongoing aerial bombardment. Supported by Ukraine's Ministry of Digital Transformation, the mobile application provides real-time notifications alerting residents to the start and end of defense emergencies across the country.
