Massive cyberattack hits Ukrainian government websites
Jan 14, 2022
Kyiv [Ukraine], January 14 : A number of Ukrainian government websites have been hit by "a massive cyberattack" warning Ukrainians to "be afraid and wait for the worst" and claiming that all their personal information had been hacked, CNN reported on Friday.
"As a result of a massive cyber attack, the websites of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs and a number of other government agencies are temporarily down. Our specialists have already started restoring the work of IT systems, and the cyberpolice has opened an investigation," Foreign Ministry Spokesman Oleg Nikolenko tweeted.
Early Friday morning (local time), Ukrainian government websites, including that of the Foreign Ministry, displayed dark screens with a text that said Ukrainians' personal information had been hacked.
"Ukrainian! All your personal data has been uploaded to the public network. All data on the computer is destroyed, it is impossible to restore them," CNN quoted the message, published in Ukrainian, Russian and Polish.
The web page further read, "All information about you has become public, be afraid and wait for the worst. This is for you for your past, present and future. For Volhynia, for the OUN UIA [Organization of Ukrainian Nationalists Ukrainian Insurgent Army], for Galicia, for Polesie and for historical lands," CNN reported.
The Ministry of Education and Science, whose official website is also down, directed citizens to use the ministry's official social media channels on Friday while the issue is being resolved, as per CNN.