Technology
Attacks on data centers across Ukraine, Russia and the Gulf raise security concerns
Scientific American reports that strikes on data centers in Ukraine, Russia, the UAE and Bahrain have exposed security standards focused on physical access.
The short version
- Scientific American reports attacks on data centers in Ukraine, Russia, the UAE and Bahrain have damaged facilities and disrupted services.[Scientific American]
- A Russian attack destroyed a Kyiv facility hosting MiroHost, but only about one in 20 customers were affected due to backup capacity abroad.[Scientific American]
- Experts say standard security targets physical access rather than aerial attacks, a risk Doug Madory says few anticipated.[Scientific American]
- Peter Judge suggests shields and overhead netting could hinder aerial surveillance, but Alexander Olshansky says no fire suppression system is designed for direct hits.[Scientific American]
Key facts
- A Russian attack destroyed a data center in Kyiv hosting MiroHost's infrastructure on September 23.[Scientific American]
- About one in 20 MiroHost customers were affected because the company had reserved backup computing capacity in Poland, the Czech Republic and Slovakia.[Scientific American]
- In October, Ukrainian drones struck three Yandex-operated data centers in Russia, disrupting services and damaging artificial intelligence infrastructure.[Scientific American]
- Earlier in 2026, Iranian drones damaged Amazon Web Services facilities in the UAE and Bahrain, causing regional web outages.[Scientific American]
- Doug Madory of Infoblox says 2026 is shaping up as the first year drone strikes on data centers become a recognized risk.[Scientific American]
- Connor Martin of the Council on Foreign Relations says most industry data center security standards focus on physical access restrictions.[Scientific American]
- Peter Judge of the Uptime Institute says operators can build shields around vulnerable equipment and use overhead netting to hinder aerial surveillance.[Scientific American]
- Alexander Olshansky says no fire suppression system is designed for a direct hit by a bomb, missile or drone.[Scientific American]
What remains uncertain
- The reporting comes from a single outlet, and the attribution of the Kyiv, Russia and Gulf strikes is not independently confirmed in the provided material.[Scientific American]
- The reporting does not establish how well proposed shields, netting and detection systems would withstand direct hits, which Olshansky says no fire suppression system is designed for.[Scientific American]
Sources
Outlet counts describe coverage, not independent confirmation. Reports may share a wire service or original source.