Russian hackers broke into the websites of a number of Ukrainian media outlets and posted disinformation about the "defeat of elite units of the Ukrainian Armed Forces in Avdiivka"

19.02.2024, 12:03 apostrophe.ua

Russian hackers broke into the websites of a number of Ukrainian media sources and posted disinformation about the "defeat of elite AFU units in Avdiivka".

"Apostrophe" collected all the information about this incident.

"Ukrainska Pravda" said that her X account was hacked and this and other fakes were also posted there.

"We are trying to restore access. We ask not to consider the information published in the social network related to the UP", - the publication said in a statement.

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The editorial staff later reported that access to the account had been successfully restored.

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LIGA.net emphasized that the editorial staff was not involved in the publication of the Russian disinformation.

"The fake news was promptly removed from the news feed, but it was still active for some time and also automatically spread in the LIGA.net account on the X social network (former Twitter)," the publication said in a statement.

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The editorial staff is investigating where exactly there is a security gap in order to fix this situation.

"We emphasize that LIGA.net publishes only reliable and verified information, and covers events on the front, referring exclusively to competent sources - official spokesmen of the AFU, military command and state leadership," LIGA.net said.

The Telegraf website was also affected.

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"Apostrophe" was one of the first to be attacked by Russian hackers.

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"The website reported that in Avdiivka "elite units of the AFU were defeated" and Ukrainian soldiers were allegedly "fleeing from their positions, abandoning equipment and wounded". The disinformation was supported by a photo collage and a caption to it. The editorial staff of "Apostrophe" states: this material has nothing to do with reality and urges readers to consume information responsibly. The staff of the site is doing everything possible to prevent similar attacks by Russian aggressors in the future," the publication's statement emphasized.

This is how the fake "news" looked like on Google.

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The Center for Countering Disinformation urged to trust only the official information of the command of the Armed Forces of Ukraine.

"Hackers began to use the page of the UP to spread Russian propaganda. In particular, posted fake information about the alleged destruction of elite units of the AFU by the Russian army. The Center urges not to be subjected to such provocations of the enemy and trust only the official information of the Command of the Armed Forces of Ukraine," the message says.

Ukraine’s State Special Communications Service also reacted to the hacker attack on well-known Ukrainian media.

"Russia continues information war against our state. Today Russian hackers launched another attack on a number of Ukrainian media and posted fake information on their sources. Representatives of Ukrainska Pravda, Liga.net, Apostrophe and Telegraf have already contacted the CERT-UA Computer Emergency Response Team of the State Special Communications Service. Our specialists are already investigating the incident," the statement said.

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