Russia Called Its Strikes On Ukrainian Data Centers A ‘Forced Digital Detox.’ Zelensky Says Kyiv Has Answered By Hitting A Data Center Belonging To Russian Tech Giant Yandex.
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President Volodymyr Zelensky said Ukraine responded to Russian attacks on Ukrainian data centers by striking a Yandex facility in Russia’s Ryazan region. The October 8 drone strike reportedly caused a fire and shut down the center; Yandex said it was still assessing whether its equipment could be restored.

Ukrainian forces struck a Yandex data center in Russia’s Ryazan region with drones overnight on October 8, President Volodymyr Zelensky said, describing the attack as a response to Russian strikes on data centers in Ukraine. The reported fire shut down the facility, while the extent of damage and the prospects for restoring its equipment remained under assessment, according to Yandex.

Zelensky acknowledged the strike while speaking to journalists, according to RBC-Ukraine. “Data centers — you all know they’ve been hitting our data centers and they still are. We hit back. I can’t give you all the details,” he said. The reported target was in Sasovo, in Russia’s Ryazan region.

A fire broke out after the overnight drone strike. The report said no one was hurt, but the data center shut down completely. Yandex said that by the evening of October 8, it did not know whether the affected equipment could be restored, adding that “the extent of the damage to the infrastructure is still being assessed.”

Users reported disruptions following the strike to Yandex services and to services operated by other companies, including Avito, IVI, MegaFon, Russian Railways and T-Bank, as well as several real estate developers. The available reporting does not establish which disruptions were directly caused by damage at the data center or how long they lasted.

At a glance
updateWhen: Strike and Zelensky’s comments reported…
The developmentZelensky said Ukraine struck a Yandex data center in Russia after weeks of Russian attacks on data centers in Ukraine.

Digital Services Disrupted by the Strike

The reported shutdown matters beyond the physical damage to one facility because data centers support online services used by businesses and consumers. Reports of disruptions across multiple platforms suggest the effects may have reached beyond Yandex, although the precise cause and scope of each outage have not been independently established in the source material.

The strike also shows how data infrastructure has become part of the conflict. Damage to such facilities can interrupt services even when there are no reported casualties. In this case, the immediate confirmed account is limited: the center caught fire, stopped operating, and Yandex was still evaluating its equipment.

Zelensky framed the operation as retaliation for Russian attacks on Ukrainian facilities. That explanation is his account of Ukraine’s motive; the reporting does not provide an independent operational assessment of the strike or its military effects.

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Weeks of Attacks on Ukrainian Data Centers

According to the report, Russian forces have repeatedly struck data centers in Ukraine in recent weeks. Since late September, attacks had damaged or destroyed data centers belonging to at least eight companies. The report does not name all of those companies or provide a full accounting of the damage and service interruptions.

Russia’s Defense Ministry described the attacks as “a forced digital detox.” That phrase is the ministry’s characterization, not a neutral description of the damage. Zelensky linked Ukraine’s strike on the Yandex facility to those Russian attacks and to strikes on Ukrainian cities.

In his comments, Zelensky referred to a Russian strike on Pryluky that, according to the report, killed 29 people, including five children, and a strike on Kramatorsk that killed more than 30 people. He said Ukraine would respond to the attacks but stressed that Kyiv would not target children. Those remarks were part of his explanation to journalists; they do not independently verify the circumstances of the data-center strike.

““The extent of the damage to the infrastructure is still being assessed.””

— Yandex, as quoted in the report

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Damage and Outage Scope Remain Unclear

Yandex had not said whether the damaged equipment could be restored, and the report provides no estimate for repairs or a return to normal operations. It is also unclear how much of the reported disruption to other companies’ services was directly tied to the strike, how many users were affected, or how long any interruptions lasted.

Zelensky confirmed Ukraine had struck back but said he could not disclose all details. The report does not provide an independent confirmation of the strike’s precise damage, the method used beyond reporting a drone attack, or the full operational consequences. The reported casualty figure for the strike itself was no injuries.

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Yandex Continues Its Damage Review

The next concrete development is likely to be an update from Yandex on whether the facility’s equipment can be restored and when the data center might resume operating. Further information could also clarify whether reported disruptions to other services were connected to the strike and whether they have been resolved.

Ukraine has not publicly provided further operational details, according to the report. The wider pattern of attacks on data centers may continue to affect service availability, but the source material does not establish what either side plans to target next.

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Key Questions

What happened to the Yandex data center?

A drone strike hit a Yandex data center in Sasovo, in Russia’s Ryazan region, overnight on October 8. A fire broke out, and the facility shut down; the report said no one was hurt.

Who said Ukraine carried out the strike?

President Volodymyr Zelensky said Ukraine had struck back after Russian attacks on Ukrainian data centers. RBC-Ukraine reported his comments to journalists.

Did Yandex say when the facility would reopen?

No reopening date was reported. Yandex said it was still assessing the infrastructure damage and did not yet know whether the equipment could be restored.

Were other services affected?

Users reported disruptions to Yandex and services associated with companies including Avito, IVI, MegaFon, Russian Railways and T-Bank. The report does not establish the cause or duration of each disruption.

What did Russia mean by ‘forced digital detox’?

Russia’s Defense Ministry used the phrase to describe its strikes on Ukrainian data centers. It was the ministry’s characterization of the attacks.

Source: rss

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