OUT OF SERVICE

Russian Cyberattack Shuts Down Ukraine’s Biggest Mobile Operator

Kyivstar has 24.3 million mobile subscribers, accounting for over half of Ukraine’s population, and 1.1 million home internet customers.

Mobile and internet service from Ukraine’s largest telecommunications company went down on Tuesday following a Russian cyberattack that “partially destroyed” its IT infrastructure, CEO Oleksandr Komarov said. “We could not counter it at the virtual level, so we shut down Kyivstar physically to limit the enemy’s access,” he added. NetBlocks, a watchdog organization that monitors cybersecurity and global internet access, confirmed the news, showing that connectivity had “collapsed.” Reuters reported that Kyivstar has 24.3 million mobile subscribers, accounting for over half of Ukraine’s population, and 1.1 million home internet customers. According to NBC News, Komarov stated in an appearance on the Ukrainian TV channel ICTV that it was “not completely clear” when service would be restored. “The most important thing is that the personal data of users has not been compromised,” the company said in a statement, pledging to compensate users for loss of service. Russia’s Ministry of Foreign Affairs did not respond to NBC News’ request for comment.