The German armed forces have temporarily halted operations of drones from German defense startup Quantum Systems after a cyberattack on the company, forcing the manufacturer, which has operations in Ukraine, to miss recent military exercises.
The German armed forces have temporarily halted operations of drones from German defense startup Quantum Systems after a cyberattack on the company, forcing the manufacturer, which has operations in Ukraine, to miss recent military exercises.
The Financial Times reports, citing its own sources, that the Bundeswehr took these measures as a precautionary measure. According to insiders, a malicious file was distributed through the company’s server, which is responsible for distributing updates for the QBase ground control and mission planning system.
Quantum Systems confirmed that it discovered the incident in late October, and that an internal investigation indicated an active cyberattack by hostile actors. The company assured that its IT and security teams have localized the threat in cooperation with government authorities, and the operation of unmanned systems currently does not pose a risk to operators.
“Companies on the front lines of supporting Ukraine are being targeted precisely because our work is critical to the security of our customers,” Quantum Systems said in an official statement, without specifying who exactly is suspected of organizing the attack. The German Defense Ministry declined to comment on the combat readiness of the weapons systems for security reasons.
In Ukraine, Quantum Systems has over 200 employees and three joint ventures with local companies. Together, they produce strike drones, interceptor drones, and ground-based unmanned systems. It is currently unknown whether the incident has affected the company’s Ukrainian units.
In July 2026, Germany’s domestic intelligence agency warned that defense companies supporting Ukraine were at increased risk of cyberattacks, espionage, and sabotage by Russia. In October, Western intelligence agencies warned European defense industry leaders about increased Russian attempts to organize assassination attempts on their lives.
