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The Ukrainian state train service has confirmed that it suffered a cyber attack, which has led to its ticket sale service being stunted.
The nation’s state train operator, Ukrzaliznytsia, confirmed the attack, which said it affected its digital services, including the mobile app used for purchasing train tickets.
“Ukrzaliznytsia’s online systems have been subjected to a large-scale targeted cyber attack. The restoration of all systems lasted all day and continues now,” said Ukrzaliznytsia in a statement on Telegram.
“Ukrzaliznytsia specialists are closely cooperating with the cyber department of the Security Service of Ukraine.”
While ticket sales were affected, leading to long queues at stations as passengers attempted to purchase physical tickets, Ukrzaliznytsia confirmed that train schedules and transport operations remained unaffected.
“The enemy failed to do the key thing: train traffic is stable, they run clearly, without delays, and all operational processes of the movement are set up in a backup format,” added Ukrzaliznytsia.
“The railway continues to move despite physical attacks on the infrastructure, and even the most vile cyber attacks cannot stop it.”
The agency added that the lack of major impact was thanks to its preparation following previous attacks.
“Since Ukrzaliznytsia has previously become the object of enemy cyber attacks, the company has implemented backup protocols.
“The latest attack was very systemic, non-trivial, and multi-level. Therefore, before a full recovery from ‘backups’, UZ specialists, involved partners, the Cyber Department of the Security Service of Ukraine and the Government Computer Emergency Response Team (CERT-UA), operating under the State Service for Special Communications, must thoroughly test the services for possible vulnerabilities.”
Ukrzaliznytsia is offering passengers who bought a ticket on 24 March for future trips a full refund. While a threat actor has not been identified, an investigation into the incident is underway.
Cyber attacks on Ukrainian infrastructure are largely attributed to Russia, which has also targeted Ukrzaliznytsia in the past with missiles and drones as part of the ongoing conflict between the two countries.
When the war began following Russia’s “special military operation” and planes became grounded, Ukrzaliznytsia served as a critical and necessary service for millions of Ukrainian citizens, allowing them to travel both domestically and internationally.
It has also been used to deliver humanitarian aid and medical supplies and evacuate injured soldiers and civilians. It is critical for its use in the nation’s trade with other European nations.
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