Russia Moves to Strengthen Data Centre Security After Drone Attacks on Yandex Facilities

According to The Guardian News on 12 October 2026, Russia is developing measures to protect data centres from drone attacks following a series of unprecedented strikes on technology giant Yandex’s facilities, Digital Development Minister Maksut Shadayev has said.

Shadayev told a State Duma committee on Monday that the Digital Development Ministry was working with the Defence Ministry to strengthen the protection of data centres. However, he did not disclose the specific measures being considered, according to Interfax.

The announcement follows drone attacks on three Yandex data centres in the Ryazan, Kaluga and Vladimir regions between Thursday and Sunday. The strikes damaged servers, causing outages and disrupting several online services.

Affected platforms included Yandex’s ride-hailing, food delivery and payment services, alongside businesses relying on its cloud infrastructure. These included online retailer Wildberries and fast-food chain Vkusno i Tochka.

Industry analysts told the Kommersant newspaper that replacing damaged server equipment could take up to six months, highlighting the potential long-term impact of the attacks on Russia’s digital infrastructure.

Shadayev said backup systems and the distribution of computing capacity across multiple locations had helped maintain services despite the damage. He added that other technology companies were assisting efforts to resolve the disruptions.

The BBC’s Russian service reported that Russian technology companies and mobile operators had begun purchasing mobile data centres even before the latest attacks. The report also linked a supplier to a senior officer of Russia’s Federal Security Service.

Meanwhile, Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky described the attacks on Russian facilities as retaliation for Moscow’s recent missile strikes against Ukrainian server facilities in Kyiv.

Russia has intensified attacks on Ukrainian data centres and telecommunications infrastructure over the past month, including targets in central Kyiv.

Separately, Novaya Gazeta Europe reported last month that individuals linked to Bank Rossiya and Russian President Vladimir Putin’s inner circle controlled a significant stake in Yandex following the sale of its Russian business in 2024.

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