World · Europe · 1 hr ago
Ukraine drone strikes disrupt Yandex data centers in central Russia
Ukraine carried out drone strikes on several Yandex data centers in central Russia, including sites near Sasovo.
Yandex is a major Russian technology company, often compared with Google.
The strikes were reported on October 8 and 10, 2026.
Automated traffic on Yandex’s network fell sharply, and its search traffic dropped to 0.4% of a recent two-week high.
Here, “bot traffic” mainly means programs that crawl websites, index search results or gather data, not necessarily fake social media accounts.
Yandex said its central Russian cloud zones were unavailable and its services were operating with limited functionality.
The strikes came after Russia began attacking Ukrainian data centers in late September, saying they supported military intelligence.
The reports do not say what will happen next.
Ukraine launched drone strikes that knocked multiple Yandex data centers in central Russia offline, according to TechRadar.
The disruptions affected Yandex services and sharply reduced traffic on its networks.
TechRadar reported that Yandex search traffic fell to 0.4% of its two-week high.
Yandex’s Central Russian Cloud Zones were unavailable, with the platform operating in limited-functionality mode, TechRadar said.
The reports describe the strikes as part of a wider escalation involving attacks on data centers during the war.
- Who
- Ukraine carried out the drone strikes, which affected data centers operated by Yandex.
- What
- Multiple data centers were knocked offline, disrupting Yandex services and traffic.
- When
- The strikes were reported on October 8 and October 10, 2026; TechRadar said the attacks took place over the preceding week.
- Where
- Sasovo and another location 220 miles west of Sasovo, in central Russia.
- Why
- TechRadar said the strikes appeared retaliatory after Russia began striking Ukrainian data centers in late September.
This story does not have two clearly opposing sides.
Russia began striking Ukrainian data centers, according to TechRadar.
Yandex traffic first dropped after a strike on a data center in Sasovo, Russia.
A second strike hit a data center 220 miles west of Sasovo.
TechRadar reported that Yandex’s Central Russian Cloud Zones were unavailable and operating in limited-functionality mode.
- Affected operator
- Yandex
- First reported strike
- October 8, 2026, at a data center in Sasovo
- Second reported strike
- October 10, 2026, 220 miles west of Sasovo
- Search traffic
- 0.4% of its two-week high, according to TechRadar
- Cloud service status
- Central Russian Cloud Zones unavailable; limited functionality
Sources
Related news
Cyberattack heats fridges at hundreds of French supermarkets
14-year-old pupil detained after teachers shot at school in southern France
Fire destroys Paris’s 17th-century Marché des Enfants Rouges
Zelensky says Russian strikes violated Trump’s proposed energy ceasefire
Ukraine’s strikes on Yandex data centers disrupted services, but bot claims are unproven
Trump announces Russia-Ukraine energy ceasefire as diesel deal draws criticism
NATO commander outlines response to a possible Russian attack
Germany detains two Turkish citizens over fire at Polish Starlink station
Zelenskyy says Russia is still attacking Ukraine’s energy sites
Ukrainian strikes on three Yandex data centers disrupt services across Russia
Two Turkish nationals arrested in Germany over fire at Polish Starlink station
