Russian cyber attack cost Ukraine’s one of two largest mobile operators $95 million

A massive cyber attack on December 12, 2023, is expected to cost the Ukrainian mobile operator "Kyivstar," one of the country's two largest, approximately ₴3.6 billion (around $95 million). 

According to VEON, the parent company of "Kyivstar," the losses from measures the company took to compensate customers for the inconvenience caused by the disruption will amount to 3.6 billion, Reuters reports.

Ilia Vityuk, the head of the Ukrainian security service's cybersecurity department, previously stated that the attack "destroyed almost everything," including thousands of virtual servers and PCs. He called it possibly the first example of a destructive cyber attack that "completely ruined the core of the telecommunications operator."

According to SBU estimates, Russian hackers may have stolen personal information, identified the locations of phones, intercepted SMS messages, and possibly taken over Telegram accounts with the level of access they obtained.

What do we know about the restoration of "Kyivstar"?

On December 12, a technical failure occurred in the Kyivstar network, leading to communication and internet access disruptions for some subscribers.

One of Ukraine's largest operators suffered a hacker attack, which likely caused a massive failure in the operation of "Kyivstar."

Later, the CEO of the mobile operator, Oleksandr Komarov, stated that the timeline for restoring the operator's services was unclear.

The SBU confirmed that a group of Russian hackers was involved in the cyber attack that destroyed the Ukrainian telecommunication operator.

On December 15, it was reported that the "Kyivstar" network was recovering after the most extensive cyber attack in the telecom industry. Over the past day, the company's specialists restored international voice roaming services, resolved issues with call drops, and stabilized communication in Kyiv.