Ukrainian drone attacks hit two Yandex data centres in Russia

Russian technology firm Yandex has stated it is struggling to maintain services after Ukrainian drones struck two of its five data centres in recent days, the BBC, Reuters, and Asharq Al-Awsat reported. The company warned customers that they may experience disruption to digital services following the strikes. The BBC reported that Yandex operates Russia's most popular search engine, as well as taxi and food-ordering apps used by tens of millions of people. [1][3][5][7]

Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky said the strikes on the facilities were in response to weeks of Russian attacks on Ukrainian data centres, according to the BBC. Kyiv stated that its drone operations are designed to target revenue streams that support Moscow's war effort. The attacks mark an escalation as both countries step up strikes against critical infrastructure. [1][3]

The strikes on Yandex facilities are part of broader military activity across the region. France 24 reported that Ukraine accused Russia of deliberately targeting civilians after a separate strike on two buses killed at least 30 people in the frontline city of Kramatorsk. [2]

Yandex traces its origins to the late 1980s when Arkady Volozh began developing search technology in Russia. The search engine officially launched as www.yandex.ru on September 23, 1997. [11]