Sberbank confirms drone attack on Balakovo data centre; services operating normally

Sberbank confirmed that its data centre in Balakovo, in Russia's Saratov region, was attacked by drones during the night of October 14. First deputy chairman Alexander Vedyakhin said the bank's services were operating normally, according to Kommersant. Interfax also reported his confirmation of an attack on one of the bank's data centres and his statement that all systems and services remained in normal operation. [ 3 , 5 ]

Vedyakhin spoke to journalists at a Sberbank breakfast held as part of Russian Energy Week, Interfax reported. He was answering a question about whether the bank's infrastructure had been affected by drone attacks on facilities in the Saratov region. The bank's press service separately said that no employees were injured. Vedomosti also reported the bank's statement that its systems were operating normally and no employees had been hurt. [ 5 , 7 ]

Regional authorities reported an overnight drone attack on Balakovo that killed one person and damaged residential buildings, according to Kommersant. Governor Roman Busargin said in the morning that all infrastructure facilities in the city were operating normally. Meduza reported that his initial account described damage to several residential buildings and a preliminary death toll of one. [ 1 , 3 ]

CNews reported that the Balakovo data centre was still under construction. It described the site as a joint project by Sberbank and Rosseti valued at 30 billion rubles, with construction beginning in 2021 and completion planned for 2027. The outlet said it was not yet known how much the drone strikes would affect the construction timetable. [ 8 ]