Marta Gichko07:23, 03.04.25

Therefore, the Russians cannot reuse captured Ukrainian Armed Forces drones and study them technologically.

Russian military seizes Ukrainian drones , infecting their systems with malware, Forbes writes .

The war between Russia and Ukraine has been characterized by the widespread use of drones, which have influenced the conduct of hostilities. A recent video on social media, likely of Russian origin, warns of malware on Ukrainian drones that is infecting Russian systems.

Malware on Ukrainian drones

According to Reddit, variants of this software “burn out the USB port, preventing reflashing and reusing the drone.” The built-in mechanisms make it difficult to use captured drones, forcing Russia to strengthen cybersecurity. This complicates the analysis of Ukrainian drones and delays the development of technologies to combat them.

Some variants of the malware block the re-imaging of the drone’s hard drive. Even in the event of a successful recovery, the system could transmit data to the Ukrainian Armed Forces operator, putting Russian military personnel at risk. This reduces the Russian Federation’s incentive to repurpose Ukrainian drones, which are a valuable trophy in a resource-scarce environment.

Consequences of using malware

The use of this tactic demonstrates how Ukraine is using its strengths in the IT sphere. Integrating viruses into drones allows you to minimize costs, complicating the work of Russian technologists. In the future, such methods could spread to other electronic systems, limiting the ability of the Russian Federation to study or repurpose Ukrainian equipment.

Russia is likely to implement similar mechanisms in its drones, which will lead to a technological race in the field of cybersecurity. The parties will be forced to constantly update anti-virus systems and develop more sophisticated methods of infecting enemy equipment.

The last three years have witnessed a growing technological rivalry. The introduction of malware into Ukrainian drones could affect not only the effectiveness of drone operations, but also the broader context of military cyber warfare.

(c)UNIAN 2025