Ukrainian Drone Strikes Hit Russian Data Centers, Disrupt Services and AI Plans

The strikes are the latest targets in aerial campaigns waged by both sides against vital infrastructure. Kyiv’s attacks on Russian data centers closely followed Moscow’s recent strikes on data centers in Ukraine, which disrupted internet and television broadcasts. On Oct. 8, Ukrainian drones hit a Yandex data center in Sasovo in the Ryazan region that houses two of the company’s three supercomputers. A data center in Kaluga was hit a day later and the one in Vladimir was struck Oct. 11. The data center and AI hub for Sberbank was hit Oct. 14 in Balakovo in the Saratov region, and four days later Kyiv struck a data center in St. Petersburg serving VKontakte.

Data centers are softer targets than oil refineries and warehouses, according to the report. They are massive buildings packed with servers and supporting power and cooling infrastructure, and a drone carrying a relatively light load of explosives can cause lasting damage.

Ukraine has stored critical data on servers in allied European countries, helping limit the damage from Russian attacks. Moscow’s strict digital sovereignty policy requires all data storage at home, making it extremely vulnerable. “Because all the infrastructure and all the data is located inside Russia, it’s relatively easier to take down,” said Nick Reiners, senior geotechnology analyst at Eurasia Group, according to the report.

Mikhail Klimarev, head of the Internet Protection Society activist group, said the damage “effectively sets Russia far behind in the AI race,” according to the report. Klimarev predicted the data center attacks could encourage many top Russian companies to move data abroad, while authorities could ease their efforts to tighten internet controls to minimize the damage.