Over the past three years and three months of its full-scale invasion of Ukraine, Russia has committed 836 crimes against journalists and media outlets.
The Institute of Mass Information (IMI) said this in a report on its website, according to Ukrinform.
Between April and May 2025, IMI recorded three media-related crimes by Russia, all involving cyberattacks.
Four media workers were killed during this period.
Volodymyr Kotsur, sports journalist turned serviceman. His death was reported on April 29, 2025. He enlisted in the Ukrainian Armed Forces following Russia’s full-scale invasion. Volodymyr was a contributor to the news outlets Sports Express Ukraine, Ukrainskyi Futbol, and Komanda.
Vyacheslav Kobrzhytskyi, service member and motorsports commentator with Setanta. His death was reported on May 1, 2025. Killed in action in Donetsk region.
Vasyl Dovbush, former media professional at BC Lux and Channel 24 turned soldier. Killed while performing a combat mission near Mohrytsia (Sumy region) on May 6, 2025.
Bohdan Lysenko was killed in action in Zaporizhzhia region on April 13, 2025. His reporting included dozens of articles in both national and regional media outlets such as Fakty, KP v Ukraini, Subota, and Ekho.
Over this period, IMI recorded three cases of cyberattacks on journalists and media.
A total of 106 media workers have been killed by Russia in Ukraine since the start of the full-scale invasion, including 12 who were killed while performing their duties.
For example, Ukrainska Pravda reported that on May 9, attackers exploited the UP Club’s email service to distribute messages, sending Russian spam under the media outlet’s name. According to IMI, one of the fraudulent emails, supposedly from Ukrainska Pravda, featured Russian messaging congratulating Ukrainians on Victory Day, referring to it as “our common Victory.”
On the eve of the Day of Remembrance of the Victims of the Crimean Tatar Genocide, which is celebrated on May 18, the Crimean Tatar Resource Center website for tracking Russia’s crimes was hacked. The organization said that the website posted articles telling the truth about the crimes committed against the Crimean Tatar people and informed the world about the current repression in the occupied Crimea.
Additionally, IMI representative Valentyna Troyan received a phishing email containing a malicious file designed to collect system data.
Read the full monitoring study here.
As reported by Ukrinform, 204 artists and 107 Ukrainian and foreign media workers have been killed in Ukraine since the beginning of Russia’s full-scale invasion.
Source: Russia committed 836 crimes against journalists and media during its full-scale invasion
