On 24 February 2024, Ukrainian TV channel Pryamiy was targeted in a cyber attack, which it accused Russian sources of orchestrating. The incident was reported by the channel itself as well as by Ukrainian press freedom groups. According to Pryamiy, at 6.33 p.m. local time the scrolling news ticker on the television’s Youtube channel was hacked, with part of it displaying pro-Russian content as a result: this included calls upon Ukraine to surrender to Russia, as well as claims that “the United States and Zelensky are destroying Ukraine”, based on screenshots made available by Pryamiy. Soon after the reported start of the incident, the channel said that the news ticker had been turned off and that technical staff were working on re-establishing full control over Pryamiy’s Youtube broadcasts.
In similar incidents recorded on February 18, which are the topic of a separate alert, several other Ukrainian online media reported having been hacked in order to broadcast similar pro-Russian content.