Russian cloud operator Yandex has admitted to data loss after a drone attack on one of its data centers in early October, reporting that it restored over 97 percent of customer data; the figures mean it lost 2.84 percent, which it blamed on critical hardware damage and a lack of backups on the platform.
Yandex said on Tuesday that it had recovered most customer data following a drone attack on its ru-central1-b availability zone in early October, which Ukrainian press reported was ordered by Kyiv. The attack caused a fire and subsequent outage, and later strikes targeted more Yandex data centers and disrupted additional cloud and payment services.
Yandex framed its recovery as a triumph for restoring over 97 percent of customer data, but the figures mean it lost 2.84 percent. It blamed the loss on critical hardware damage and a lack of backups on the platform. It is unclear whether Yandex does not keep backups of its own cloud, whether its resilience techniques do not create multiple copies of customer data, or whether clients did not protect their data.
Yandex has decided to enable backups by default for all virtual machines customers create in its cloud. Customers will consume and pay for more Yandex resources unless they opt out of the automated backups. The company’s announcement of its recovery efforts links to a page that discusses hybrid cloud data protection strategies and mentions Yandex’s own Stackland product, which brings its stack on-premises, as an example of a hybrid approach.
On Wednesday, Yandex launched a new availability zone named ru-central1-f. The company did not say where it is located, other than that it is in a new location. Yandex has imposed quotas that limit the amount of resources users can access in the new zone and says it cannot yet handle traffic to private endpoints at the new facility. Many nations have imposed sanctions that restrict sales of technology products to Russia, which may explain why Yandex might struggle to provision enough infrastructure for untrammeled access to the new zone.
Analysis
Why This Matters
- Yandex is a major cloud provider in Russia, and data loss from a drone attack highlights the vulnerability of critical digital infrastructure during wartime.
- The decision to enable backups by default means higher costs for customers, who may now need to consider alternatives amid ongoing conflict.
- Sanctions on technology exports to Russia may limit Yandex’s ability to rebuild and expand capacity, affecting service reliability for users.
Background
Yandex operates one of Russia’s largest cloud platforms. The drone attacks occurred in the context of Russia’s war with Ukraine, which began in February 2022. Ukrainian forces have repeatedly targeted Russian infrastructure, including energy and industrial sites. Many Western nations have imposed sanctions restricting the sale of technology products to Russia, which can affect Russian companies’ access to hardware and software.
Key Perspectives
- Yandex: Acknowledged the data loss but presented the recovery of over 97 percent of customer data as a triumph. It blamed the loss on critical hardware damage and a lack of backups on the platform and has responded by enabling backups by default for new virtual machines.
- Ukrainian press: Reported that the drone attack was ordered by Kyiv, indicating a deliberate targeting of Yandex’s data center infrastructure.
What to Watch
- Whether Yandex further expands its new availability zone and lifts quotas as it provisions more infrastructure.
- How customers respond to the default backup policy and whether they seek alternative cloud providers.
- The possibility of further drone attacks on Yandex facilities as the war continues.
Checked
12 claims in this story checked against 1 source: 12 supported.
Show each claim
- SupportedYandex admitted data loss after drone attacks on its data centers.www.theregister.com - Articles: “Russian cloud operator Yandex has admitted to data loss after a drone attack on its datacenters.”
- SupportedYandex restored over 97% of customer data.www.theregister.com - Articles: “it restored over 97 percent of customer data.”
- SupportedYandex lost 2.84% of customer data and blamed the loss on critical hardware damage and a lack of backups on the platform.www.theregister.com - Articles: “the company lost 2.84 percent of customer data, which it blamed on “critical hardware damage and a lack of backups on the platform.””
- SupportedThe attack on the ru-central1-b availability zone happened in early October, and Ukrainian press said it was ordered by Kyiv.www.theregister.com - Articles: “The attack, which Ukrainian press said was ordered by Kyiv, happened in early October and caused a fire and subsequent outage at Yandex’s ru-central1-b availability zone.”
- SupportedThe attack caused a fire and subsequent outage; later strikes targeted more Yandex data centers and disrupted more cloud and payment services.www.theregister.com - Articles: “The attack ... caused a fire and subsequent outage at Yandex’s ru-central1-b availability zone. Subsequent strikes targeted more Yandex datacenters and disrupted more of the company’s cloud and payment services.”
- SupportedIt is unclear whether the lack of backups refers to Yandex’s own cloud, its resilience techniques, or clients’ data protection.www.theregister.com - Articles: “It’s unclear if Yandex’s use of the phrase “on the platform” indicates it doesn’t keep backups of its own cloud, if whatever resilience techniques it employs don’t create multiple copies of customer data, or if clients didn’t protect their data.”
- SupportedYandex decided to enable backups by default for all virtual machines customers create in its cloud; customers will use and pay for more resources unless they opt out.www.theregister.com - Articles: “Yandex has decided to enable backups by default for all VMs customers create in its cloud. That decision will mean customers will consume and pay for more Yandex resources, unless they opt out of the automated backups.”
- SupportedYandex’s recovery announcement links to a page about hybrid-cloud data protection strategies that mentions its Stackland product as a hybrid approach.www.theregister.com - Articles: “Yandex’s announcement of its recovery efforts links to a page extolling the virtues of a hybrid cloud when devising data protection strategies. That page also mentions Yandex’s own Stackland product, which brings its stack on-prem, as an example of a hybrid approach.”
- SupportedYandex launched a new availability zone named ru-central1-f on Wednesday.www.theregister.com - Articles: “On Wednesday the company also launched a new availability zone named ru-central1-f.”
- SupportedYandex did not disclose the new zone’s location beyond saying it was in a new location.www.theregister.com - Articles: “Yandex didn’t say where it’s located, other than to say it’s in “a new location.””
- SupportedYandex imposed quotas on resources in the new zone and said it cannot yet handle traffic to private endpoints there.www.theregister.com - Articles: “Yandex has imposed quotas that limit the amount of resources users can access in the new availability zone and says it can’t yet handle traffic to private endpoints at the new facility.”
- SupportedTechnology sanctions on Russia may explain why Yandex might struggle to provision enough infrastructure for unrestricted access to the new zone.www.theregister.com - Articles: “Many nations have imposed sanctions that restrict sales of technology products to Russia. It’s therefore unsurprising that Yandex might struggle to provision enough infrastructure to allow untrammeled access to a new availability zone.”
