Internet traffic in the occupied city of Kherson, Ukraine, is diverted to Russia
Posted: Sat Dec 28, 2024 7:19 am
Internet traffic in the occupied city of Kherson (Ukraine) is said to be being rerouted by Moscow through Russian infrastructure (and thus bypassing Ukrainian infrastructure), according to a statement made last night by NetBlocks, a British organisation specialising in monitoring network failures.
NetBlocks reported a network outage in Kherson last Saturday that affected several Ukrainian providers. The connection was restored after a few hours, but several metrics suggest that the traffic has been channeled through Russia since then.
“Connections are being routed through the list of cell phone numbers Russian network of networks instead of Ukrainian telecom providers. As such, it is likely that connections in Kherson are currently at the mercy of Russian internet regulations ,” NetBlocks says.
According to the Ukrainian cybersecurity agency SSSCIP, parts of the Ukrainian city of Zaporizhia are also said to be affected by the diversion of internet traffic to Russia.
Russia is apparently placing great importance on long-term influence over the southern Ukrainian city of Kherson, which was captured by the Russian military in early March.
Russia wanted to hold a referendum in Kherson
The city of about 300,000 inhabitants is now under pro-Russian administration , which would make it impossible for it to return to Ukrainian control. Since last Sunday, the Russian ruble has also been established as a method of payment in Kherson.
"All indications are that Russia intends to exert strong political and economic influence in Kherson over the long term," NetBlocks said in its report.
NetBlocks reported a network outage in Kherson last Saturday that affected several Ukrainian providers. The connection was restored after a few hours, but several metrics suggest that the traffic has been channeled through Russia since then.
“Connections are being routed through the list of cell phone numbers Russian network of networks instead of Ukrainian telecom providers. As such, it is likely that connections in Kherson are currently at the mercy of Russian internet regulations ,” NetBlocks says.
According to the Ukrainian cybersecurity agency SSSCIP, parts of the Ukrainian city of Zaporizhia are also said to be affected by the diversion of internet traffic to Russia.
Russia is apparently placing great importance on long-term influence over the southern Ukrainian city of Kherson, which was captured by the Russian military in early March.
Russia wanted to hold a referendum in Kherson
The city of about 300,000 inhabitants is now under pro-Russian administration , which would make it impossible for it to return to Ukrainian control. Since last Sunday, the Russian ruble has also been established as a method of payment in Kherson.
"All indications are that Russia intends to exert strong political and economic influence in Kherson over the long term," NetBlocks said in its report.