---
title: "Strike on Kyiv data centers: what happened to MiroHost and whether Ukrainians will be left without connectivity"
description: "Russian drones destroyed MiroHost's data center in Kyiv on September 23. The company's founder, Oleksandr Olshanskyi, stated that 95% of clients were unaffected thanks to backup capacity in Poland and the Czech Republic."
date: 2026-09-24T13:34:00.000Z
lang: en
url: https://xab.info/en/posts/strike-on-kyiv-data-centers-mirohost-connectivity
tags: [data-centers, kyiv, drone-attack, mirohost, internet-infrastructure, ukraine-war, telecom]
publisher: "XAB.info"
---

# Strike on Kyiv data centers: what happened to MiroHost and whether Ukrainians will be left without connectivity

## 🎯 Key Points

- On September 23, 2026, Russian drones destroyed MiroHost's data center in Kyiv, causing local disruptions in providers' operations
- Around 95% of MiroHost's clients were unaffected thanks to backup capacity in Poland and the Czech Republic; about 150 out of 20,000–25,000 users were left without access
- Oleksandr Olshanskyi believes that completely cutting Ukrainians off from communications without unconventional weapons is unrealistic
- Foreign Minister Andrii Sybiha stated that the aim of the attack was to cut off the flow of information and the air-raid alert system
- Olshanskyi reminded that Russia also has data centers, and escalation could provoke retaliatory strikes

On September 23, 2026, Russian drones carried out a massive strike on a number of data centers in Kyiv, causing disruptions in the operation of several internet providers and telecommunications networks. As a result of the attack, a data center was destroyed on the territory of which the infrastructure of hosting provider MiroHost was located. This was reported by RBC-Ukraine, Delo.UA, Ukranskyi News and Informator, and MiroHost founder and Internet Invest head Oleksandr Olshanskyi commented on the scale of the damage and the prospects for Ukraine's digital infrastructure in an exclusive blitz for RBC-Ukraine.

### Scale of the damage and the role of redundancy

According to Olshanskyi, the vast majority of the company's clients — around 95% — were not affected by the attack, as their infrastructure had been previously migrated or duplicated on backup capacity in Poland and the Czech Republic. Out of the total number of clients, which he estimates at 20,000–25,000, around 150 users who had not migrated or duplicated their infrastructure were left without access to services. "The clients are located in Ukraine, but modern technology is set up in such a way that you may not even know where your servers are located," he explained. At the same time, Olshanskyi emphasizes that he does not have a complete picture of all the facilities that came under attack: "I know of the existence of some facilities, but I don't know what was happening there."

### A new level of escalation or a continuation of established practice

When asked whether the strike on data centers represents a new level of escalation, Olshanskyi answered that "there is nothing new about it": similar attacks had already been recorded throughout the war, though not on such a massive and simultaneous scale. He noted that most major telecom operators and hosting providers had already reserved capacity abroad before this attack — primarily in Poland, the Czech Republic and Slovakia. Ukrainian Foreign Minister Andrii Sybiha, for his part, stated that Russia deliberately struck the data centers in order to cut off the flow of information and the air-raid alert system. Olshanskyi, however, considers such a goal "not very realistic" in the context of completely destroying communications.

### Is it possible to completely cut Ukrainians off from the network

Commenting on speculation about a possible complete disconnection of Ukrainians from the internet, Olshanskyi drew a historical parallel: during World War II, around 60% of buildings in London were damaged, in his words, and "that happens too." Nevertheless, he emphasized that completely destroying modern telecommunications infrastructure without resorting to unconventional weapons — including an electromagnetic pulse — is extremely difficult. "Modern communications are set up in such a way that in order to completely destroy them, some kind of unconventional weapon would have to be used," he stated. In his assessment, a realistic consequence of the strikes is local outages and slowdowns in the operation of individual services, but not a total disconnection.

### Retaliatory logic and risks for Russian infrastructure

Olshanskyi also pointed to the mirror nature of military risks: data centers also operate in Moscow and other Russian cities, and, in his words, "if one side escalates, then the other will respond. That is the logic of war." He did not predict specific retaliatory actions, but noted that a concentration of attacks on digital infrastructure could become a trigger for expanding the geography and targets of strikes on both sides.

### Practical recommendations for citizens

Wrapping up the conversation, Olshanskyi offered a number of practical tips that, in his words, are related not so much to yesterday's attack as to the general experience of living in wartime conditions. He recommended keeping key documents — birth certificates, passports, diplomas — in paper form, rather than relying exclusively on electronic copies in the Diia app. In addition, he urged people to keep a reserve of cash, not to rely entirely on bank cards, and to be able to quickly pack a "go-bag" with the necessary items. "Everyone has gotten used to this, but unfortunately, at any moment all sorts of unpleasant things can happen," the MiroHost founder summed up.

## 🔍 Fact-Check Verification

- [It is too late to cause panic in the fifth year of the war: a blitz with Olshanskyi on the strikes on data centers](https://www.rbc.ua/ukr/news/p-yatiy-rik-viyni-vlashtovuvati-paniku-pizno-1790256610.html) - Первоисточник интервью. Подтверждает факт уничтожения дата-центра MiroHost, оценку 95% незатронутых клиентов, 150 пострадавших из 20–25 тыс., резервирование в PL/CZ/SK, заявление Сибиги, советы по бумажным документам и наличным.
- [Russia destroyed a Ukrainian data center with MiroHost's capacity: what are the consequences](https://delo.ua/ru/news/rossiya-unictozila-ukrainskii-data-centr-s-moshhnostyami-mirohost-kakie-posledstviya-473130/) - Независимо подтверждает факт уничтожения дата-центра MiroHost в результате российской атаки и обсуждает последствия для хостинг-рынка.
- [Russian attack destroyed MiroHost's data center in Ukraine — recovery timeline unknown](https://ukranews.com/news/1176798-rossijskaya-ataka-unichtozhila-data-tsentr-mirohost-v-ukraine-sroki-vosstanovleniya-neizvestny) - Подтверждает факт уничтожения и указывает, что сроки восстановления инфраструктуры на момент публикации не были известны.
- [MiroHost data center destroyed as a result of Russian attack on Kyiv](https://informator.ua/ru/data-centr-mirohost-unichtozhen-v-rezultate-rossiyskoy-ataki-na-kiev) - Подтверждает факт уничтожения дата-центра в ходе атаки на Киев.

## ❓ FAQ

### Q: Which specific facility was destroyed in Kyiv on September 23?
**A:** According to RBC-Ukraine, Delo.UA, Ukranskyi News and Informator, as a result of the drone attack, a data center was destroyed on the territory of which the infrastructure of hosting provider MiroHost was located. Other data centers in Kyiv were also affected, causing local disruptions for several providers.

### Q: How many MiroHost clients were affected by the attack?
**A:** MiroHost founder Oleksandr Olshanskyi estimates that around 95% of clients were not affected, as their infrastructure was running on backup capacity in Poland and the Czech Republic. About 150 users out of a total of 20,000–25,000 clients were left without access.

### Q: Could Ukrainians be completely left without the internet due to strikes on data centers?
**A:** In Olshanskyi's assessment, completely destroying modern telecommunications infrastructure without the use of unconventional weapons (for example, an electromagnetic pulse) is extremely difficult. A realistic consequence is local outages and slowdowns of individual services, but not a total disconnection.

### Q: What did Foreign Minister Andrii Sybiha say about the attack?
**A:** Sybiha stated that Russia struck the data centers with the aim of cutting off the flow of information and the air-raid alert system. Olshanskyi, in turn, called this goal "not very realistic" in the context of completely destroying communications.

### Q: What practical advice did Oleksandr Olshanskyi give to citizens?
**A:** He recommended keeping key documents (birth certificates, passports, diplomas) in paper form, not relying exclusively on electronic copies in Diia, keeping a reserve of cash, and being ready to quickly pack a "go-bag" with the necessary items.