Ukrainian Drones Hit Sberbank Data Center After Yandex Attacks
Ukrainian drones struck a Sberbank data center in Russia's Saratov region, following similar attacks on Yandex infrastructure. While Russia claims critical systems remain operational, users reported widespread outages of AI services.
Why it matters
The targeting of digital infrastructure and AI research facilities marks an escalation in the technological dimension of the ongoing conflict.
Ukrainian drones targeted a major data center under construction for Russian state lender Sberbank in the Saratov region overnight, First Deputy CEO Alexander Vedyakhin said Wednesday, as attacks on Moscow disrupted more than 500 flights.
Vedyakhin said all banking systems and online services continued to operate normally and no employees were injured in the attack in the Volga River city of Balakovo, according to the state-run news agency TASS.
Users across Russia nevertheless reported disruptions to Sberbank and its GigaChat artificial intelligence service, as well as several other major online platforms, according to outage tracker Detector404. The reports did not establish a link between the disruptions and the drone attacks.
NASA's satellite fire-monitoring system showed multiple fires in Balakovo.
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