World · Europe · 1 hr ago
Ukraine’s strikes on Yandex data centers disrupted services, but bot claims are unproven
Ukraine struck three data centers belonging to Yandex, a major Russian technology company, between Oct.
8 and Oct.
11.
The latest strike damaged a facility in the Vladimir region, east of Moscow, and Yandex said its operations there were suspended.
The attacks disrupted some Yandex services, according to the sources.
Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy said online bot activity dropped after the strikes.
Some internet traffic measurements showed a sharp fall in automated requests from Yandex’s network, but automated traffic includes many kinds of software activity, not just propaganda accounts.
The figures therefore do not establish that Russian social media bots were silenced, and the strikes’ effect on such activity remains unclear.
The sources do not say what happens next.
Ukraine struck three Yandex data centers between Oct. 8 and Oct. 11, disrupting some of the company’s services.
The Oct. 11 strike affected a facility in Russia’s Vladimir region, east of Moscow.
Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy said the strikes were followed by a drop in pro-Russian bot activity on social media.
Cloudflare data showed a sharp fall in automated traffic from Yandex’s network, but that measure does not establish that propaganda bots went offline.
The articles say automated web traffic includes many kinds of software activity and is not the same as Russian propaganda activity.
- Who
- Ukraine carried out the strikes on data centers belonging to Yandex. Zelenskyy said bot activity fell afterward.
- What
- Three strikes disrupted Yandex services, and claims that they silenced Russian social media bots remain unproven.
- When
- The strikes took place on Oct. 8, Oct. 9 and Oct. 11, 2026.
- Where
- Yandex data centers in Russia were struck; the Oct. 11 facility was in the Vladimir region, east of Moscow.
- Why
- The BBC reported that the strikes were intended to target places providing revenue for Moscow’s war effort.
Zelenskyy and supporters of the bot-drop claim
Skeptics of the bot-drop claim
Evidence
Zelenskyy and supporters of the bot-drop claim
Zelenskyy said fewer bots were active after the strikes, and Cloudflare data showed a sharp fall in automated traffic from Yandex’s network.
Skeptics of the bot-drop claim
The data measures automated requests from Yandex’s network, not propaganda bots or the broader volume of Russian internet traffic.
Meaning
Zelenskyy and supporters of the bot-drop claim
Supporters said the change was consistent with fewer pro-Russian bots posting online.
Skeptics of the bot-drop claim
The traffic measure includes many types of software activity, and the articles say it does not prove that propaganda bots went offline.
The first reported strike hit a Yandex data center.
A second strike hit a Yandex data center.
A third strike damaged a Yandex data center in the Vladimir region, and operations at the facility were reported completely suspended.
An analysis cited by U24 Media reported that automated traffic from Yandex’s network had fallen sharply after Oct. 8.
- Strikes
- Three Yandex data centers hit between Oct. 8 and Oct. 11, 2026
- Oct. 11 facility
- Vladimir region, east of Moscow
- Facility operations
- Reported completely suspended after the Oct. 11 strike
- Cloudflare comparison
- Yandex automated traffic measured at 0.3% of the chart’s peak at one point, versus 88.2% at the same hour a week earlier
- Bot claims
- The articles say the automated-traffic figures do not prove that Russian propaganda bots went offline
What people are saying
When we started responding to Russia’s operation against our data centers and when our strikes reached Yandex data centers, it suddenly became a little easier to breathe on many social media platforms
A lot of people, a lot of people noticed it, and there was less hate, less division and fewer provocations because there were fewer bots
And it’s pretty clear where those bots were coming from… If they disappeared when Yandex went offline, this proves again and again that Europe is not the source of the problems.
Posts on X
The third Yandex data center hit by drones since Oct 7. Traffic from YANDEX (AS13238) was already ~35% lower after the Sasovo strike, then fell 99% vs. last week at ~00:30 UTC Oct 11, as its Vladimir site shut down, per the company. Follow along: https://t.co/0rbYydRfID
Ukraine hits another Yandex data center in Russia and Cloudflare data shows Russian bot traffic dropping dramatically. Might have an impact right before the November elections.
If confirmed, this is telling: Russian data centres get hit, and online activity around AfD suddenly plummets. 📉 So much talk about German patriotism… then the connection from Russia goes down. 🤔🇷🇺
Sources
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