Ukrainian Drones Hit Data Center Storing Russia’s Tax Database

A Ukrainian drone attack damaged a government data center near the Russian city of Gorodets. The facility is located about 370 kilometers east of the Kremlin and more than 970 kilometers from the front line. The center, operated by the Russian Ministry of Finance, reportedly stores several government registries. These include the Federal Tax Service’s tax database.

The damaged facility is one of the Federal Tax Service’s 2 main data processing centers operating in different regions. The system distributes data and services among several centers. Therefore, the disruption in Gorodets could affect the operation of Russia’s government information systems.

The Russian Ministry of Finance reportedly operates 2 other data centers. One is at the Federal Data Processing Center in Dubna, Moscow Oblast. The other is located in the settlement of Yerzovka in Volgograd Oblast. If the facility in Gorodets remains out of operation for an extended period, 1/3 of the overall infrastructure and the stability of government services could be seriously affected.

Ukraine has targeted data centers in Russia several times since the beginning of October. The attacks began after Moscow stepped up its strikes on data centers in Ukraine. Following the latest drone attacks, internet traffic from “Yandex” bots fell sharply. The bot network spreading disinformation continued operating by shifting its activities to undamaged centers.