Residents of Kyiv, Ukraine, received fake warnings of radiation, chemical threats and street fighting on the official Air Alert app on Sunday night.
Residents of Kyiv, Ukraine, received fake warnings of radiation, chemical threats and street fighting on the official Air Alert app on Sunday night.
Users also got a message mentioning Russia's Oreshnik missile and a link to a Telegram channel. Ukrainian media suggest the app was hacked, though that has not been officially confirmed.
The Air Alert app is how Ukrainians learn of incoming strikes, so fake alarms do real damage: they spread panic and, worse, teach people to ignore the next real warning.
It is the latest example of the war reaching phones as well as front lines, where trust in the alert itself becomes a target.
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