Ukraine strikes disrupt Yandex services, but not bots in Lithuania

Ukrainian attacks on Yandex data centres have disrupted services for users in Russia, but have not reduced bot activity in Lithuania, data analysed by the company Repsense showed, LRT reported.

People in Russia reported problems ordering food, shopping online and using ride-hailing services. Yandex Pay stopped working, while users also reported issues with Yandex Music. The company said it was operating in emergency mode.

Reports said Ukraine had disabled three of Yandex’s five data centres. The first target was the centre in Sasovo, which housed two of the company’s three supercomputers used for artificial intelligence systems. A centre in Kaluga was struck on Friday, followed by one in Vladimir, near Moscow, on Sunday.

Social media users, commentators and politicians in several countries have also claimed that the attacks reduced the activity of Russian bots. Nerijus Maliukevičius, an associate professor at Vilnius University’s Institute of International Relations and Political Science, cautioned that the claim could be part of Ukraine’s communications efforts.

“We still need data on this, but Ukrainian drone manufacturers are spreading the message actively, and many people who support Ukraine are sharing it widely,” Maliukevičius said. He added that it was important not to undermine trust in Ukraine’s communications.

Repsense analysed the claim on Monday that the attacks had taken fake accounts spreading information favourable to Russia offline. Its findings showed no change in Lithuania. The company’s head, Mykolas Katkus, said the analysis used several methods and reached the same conclusion: the attacks had not affected bot activity.

“They operate through electronic infrastructure we have built ourselves,” Katkus said. He added that the damage to Yandex could make it harder for Russia to block the internet and VPNs and to maintain an autonomous internet system known as the “Cheburnet”. Electronic payments and other services had also been disrupted, he said, while efforts to counter the bots would likely have to continue locally.

Information technology experts said rebuilding the data centres would be costly and take time. They said global competition for equipment and components, along with sanctions, further limits Russia’s options.