Ukrainians sue tech company over use of its equipment by Russian army
Ukrainian civilians and relatives of the deceased have filed a lawsuit in a U.S. federal court against the technology company Ubiquiti. They accuse the networking equipment manufacturer of facilitating the operation of a Russian military communication system, which, according to the plaintiffs, is used for drone attacks on civilians in Ukraine.
The lawsuit was filed on August 11 in the Federal Court for the Southern District of New York. The case is titled Kovalenko et al. v. Ubiquiti, Inc., case number 1:26-cv-06838.
The plaintiffs are seeking more than $75 million in compensation, as well as punitive damages, the amount of which is to be determined by the court. They also ask the court to require Ubiquiti to implement a technical mechanism to remotely disable unauthorized airMAX devices in Russia and in temporarily occupied territories of Ukraine.
What the plaintiffs allege
The complaint involves long-range wireless radio bridges and airMAX technology. According to the plaintiffs, Russian military forces use this equipment to transmit video from reconnaissance drones and for communication between operators, commanders, and strike units.
The equipment allegedly helps maintain a control network over distances of up to 100 kilometers, including in areas where normal telecommunications infrastructure has been destroyed or damaged.
The plaintiffs claim that after the start of the full-scale invasion, imports of Ubiquiti products into Russia did not cease, despite U.S. export restrictions. According to Russian customs data cited in the complaint, over a period of 26 months after the ban was imposed, company equipment worth $28 million was imported into the Russian Federation. That is almost 66% more than during the previous comparable period.
The company is accused of inaction
The lawsuit authors state that Ubiquiti could see the location of devices thanks to telemetry that the equipment transmitted to the company's servers during software updates.
In the plaintiffs' opinion, the manufacturer had the ability to stop working with distributors suspected of circumventing sanctions, limit updates, and introduce geoblocking or a remote device shutdown feature.
The complaint also alleges that for more than three years after the start of the invasion, Ubiquiti continued to send updates for airMAX devices operating in Russia and occupied territories. According to the plaintiffs, the company stopped updates for users with Russian IP addresses only around September 2025.
The lawsuit describes attacks on civilians
Among the plaintiffs are Ukrainians who have been wounded, lost relatives, or have been forced to live under constant threat of Russian drones.
In particular, the case materials describe an attack in Kherson, during which a Russian drone chased a couple's car and dropped explosive through the windshield. The husband was killed and his wife was seriously wounded. It also mentions strikes on a rescuer and an employee of an energy company.
The lawsuit includes accusations of negligently supplying dangerous equipment, improper product design, creating a public threat, and facilitating attacks. The plaintiffs demand a jury trial.
The claims made in the complaint have not yet been verified by the court. There is no public response from Ubiquiti to the accusations at the time of publication.
Sources: court complaint in the case Kovalenko et al. v. Ubiquiti, DiCello Levitt
