“Good” hackers checked the reliability of the “drone marketplace” for the military
17 March 08:49
The State Logistics Operator, together with Cyber Unit Technologies, conducted a Bug Bash, or cybersecurity test of the DOT-Chain IT system. This is reported on the website of the State Logistics Operator, "Komersant Ukrainian" informs.
Testing digital products with the involvement of ethical hackers is a common global practice – it is often used to control the effectiveness of the protection of sites, systems and programs. During a Bug Bash, ethical hackers look for potential system vulnerabilities in a controlled environment.
The DOT-Chain IT system, developed by the DOT team, is used in the field of food supply for the Armed Forces of Ukraine. Its implementation allowed to shorten the supply cycle by 4 times (from request to payment for the goods) and reduce the amount of paperwork by 30,000 documents per week. Soon it is planned to launch DOT-Chain Defense, a module of the system that will operate in the format of a “drone marketplace” and will allow combat units to choose the types and number of UAVs.
How the system’s cyber defense was tested and what it showed
For two days, a group of 20 tested hackers worked in a separate DOT-Chain environment, where DOT IT specialists controlled the process.
“Overall, DOT-Chain has shown its resilience. All the information gained from the event will be used by our team to improve the system and make it even more reliable,” said Alyona Zhuzha, IT Advisor at DOT.
Participants of the event received financial rewards, which, by the way, depended on the number and importance of the vulnerabilities they found.
“The Marketplace was presented in February at a meeting with drone manufacturers
As Defense Minister Rustem Umerov said at the time, our task is to ensure fast and uninterrupted supply of the best UAVs for our soldiers, so we are launching a new model of drone supply.
The Defense Procurement Agency then presented manufacturers with new rules of interaction between the state, the army and business.
The Minister of Defense explained that the DOT-Chain system has already been successfully used in non-lethal procurement and will now help
– deliver drones to the frontline faster: units will be able to choose the UAVs they need, and the delivery time will be reduced from months to a few weeks.
– support manufacturers: they will receive predictable orders and will be able to plan production scaling.
– create transparent rules – clear supply mechanisms will stimulate competition and market development.
According to the minister, the DOT-Chain Defense System will enable combat brigades to determine which drones they need, depending on the situation on the battlefield. At the same time, manufacturers will get a clear picture of demand and will be able to plan production more efficiently.
The Ministry of Defense has enough funds to purchase drones
In 2024, the Ministry of Defense, together with the State Service for Special Communications and Information Protection of Ukraine, purchased more than 1.5 million drones. This was announced by Hlib Kanevskyi, Director of the Procurement Policy Department of the Ministry of Defense of Ukraine.
He said that 96% of this amount was paid to Ukrainian manufacturers and suppliers. This had a positive effect on the development of the Ukrainian UAV industry.
“This year, the numbers will be even higher, because the capacity of the domestic defense industry in 2025 is approximately 4.5 million FPV drones. And the Ministry of Defense plans to purchase them all,” emphasized Hlib Kanevskyi.
He said that this year the Ministry of Defense of Ukraine will allocate more than UAH 110 billion for the purchase of drones, including more than UAH 102 billion through the Defense Procurement Agency.
According to Hlib Kanevskyi, all procurement plans for 2025 have received budgetary funds, which will allow the frontline to be supplied with unmanned aerial vehicles as soon as possible.
