Drone Attack on Yandex Marks First Major Strike on Russian Data Hub Since War Began

A drone strike has hit a major data centre operated by Yandex, Russia’s largest technology and artificial intelligence company, causing a fire and forcing a temporary shutdown at the facility. The incident occurred at the company’s Sasovo data centre, one of its five major data facilities, which houses tens of thousands of servers. The attack marks a significant reported strike on a Russian data hub since the start of the war in Ukraine, highlighting the growing exposure of digital infrastructure to military operations.

Yandex said the drone attack sparked a fire at the facility and that operations had been temporarily suspended while the company worked to restore affected services. The company did not disclose the full extent of the damage or provide detailed information about the impact on its infrastructure. It also said its main consumer services had not been disrupted, suggesting that the company’s wider systems continued to function despite the incident at Sasovo.

The facility is part of Yandex’s wider data centre network, which supports the company’s digital services and technology operations. Data centres house servers that process and store information for online platforms, applications and other computing services. Damage to such infrastructure can affect service availability and require technical teams to assess equipment, restore operations and shift workloads where possible. The company said restoration work was underway following the incident.

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The attack comes as Russia and Ukraine continue to expand their use of drones against infrastructure linked to the wider conflict. Targets have included energy facilities, oil refineries, ports, warehouses and telecommunications systems. The reported strike on Yandex’s facility adds data centres to the range of critical infrastructure exposed to drone attacks, raising concerns about the security and resilience of digital networks during wartime.

Russia has also carried out attacks on Ukrainian data centres and telecommunications infrastructure in recent weeks, including facilities in central Kyiv, according to the report. These incidents illustrate how digital infrastructure has become increasingly important to the functioning of businesses and public services, while also presenting potential vulnerabilities during armed conflict. Disruptions can have consequences beyond the physical site, depending on the services hosted there and the availability of backup systems.

The full operational and financial impact of the strike on Yandex remains unclear, as the company has not released a detailed assessment of the damage. Its statement that major consumer services were unaffected indicates that widespread disruption had not been reported at the time of the announcement. Further information about the condition of the Sasovo facility, the restoration timeline and any longer-term effects on the company’s data infrastructure may emerge as the assessment continues.

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