According to local media, a female voice rendered the fake alerts from several radio stations, including Yumor FM, Relax FM, Comedy Radio, Humor FM, and Avatoradio. The false warning announced an air raid and requested the listeners to seek shelter quickly.
Millions of Russian citizens in over a dozen cities were baffled to hear unusual radio alerts, sirens, and text messages this Wednesday morning. These warnings were about missile strikes and air raids on Russia.
However, the Russian government’s Ministry of Emergency Situations later announced that these were fake warnings and blamed hackers for airing false alerts on commercial radio stations.
According to local media, a female voice rendered the fake alerts from several radio stations, including Yumor FM, Relax FM, Comedy Radio, Humor FM, and Avatoradio. The false warning announced an air raid and requested the listeners to seek shelter quickly.
“Attention, an air raid warning is being announced. Go to the shelter immediately. Attention, Attention, the threat of a missile strike.”
Today, radio stations across Russia including in Volgograd, Stavropol, Moscow region broadcasted air raid warnings (the video is reportedly from Belgorod)
— Oleg Shakirov (@shakirov2036) February 22, 2023
Acc to the Ministry of Emergency Situations this messages is fake and was caused by a hacker attack https://t.co/Cd7bGeVVAx pic.twitter.com/wfuIjGQkyZ
These bogus warnings were broadcast in ten cities, including Kazan, Tyumen, Pyatigorsk, Nizhny Novgorod, Voronezh, Magnitogorsk, Novouralsk, Ufa, and Stary Oskol. Loud sirens followed these warnings, and civilians were urged to seek out air raid shelters. Some people recorded these false warnings on camera.
Locals in the cities where the warnings were broadcast, such as the Kurgan and Belgorod regions, promptly informed citizens that these were false warnings. The ministry noted that the warnings were caused by an attack on a satellite operator’s infrastructure.
Moreover, government officials stated that an unauthorized “tie-in is going in the air,” clarifying that the alarm signals were fake. Authorities claim that the perpetrators could be linked to the Kyiv regime.
A tweet shared by Anonymous with Hackread.com claims that it was the Anonymous hacktivist collective behind the hacking spree.
JUST IN: The Anonymous collective (RoughSec & Team OneFist) disrupted radio broadcasts in several #Russian cities with the sound of air raid sirens and a warning of imminent missile strikes. #OpRussia #Anonymous #SlavaUkraïni https://t.co/pN8y3XC6yg
— Anonymous TV 🇺🇦 (@YourAnonTV) February 23, 2023
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Earlier, a Denial of Service attack (DDoS attack) disrupted Russian President Vladimir Putin’s address to the nation on state media sites. Ukrainian hackers claimed responsibility for the attack.
“As a result of a hacker attack on the servers of some commercial radio stations in some regions of the country, information was broadcast about an alleged announcement of an air raid warning and a threat of a missile strike,” the ministry’s statement read.
It is worth noting that most stations airing these alerts are owned by Russia’s leading media company, Gazprom-Media. Furthermore, the alerts were aired just two days before the first anniversary of the Russian invasion of Ukraine.
