Publication date:
Publication from:
As Ukraine fights for its sovereignty on every front, one critical battleground is often underestimated: the digital one. As the founder of Innoware, I have spent 25 years watching Ukrainian businesses develop a deep dependence on russian software. Today, that dependence has become a genuine national security threat. According to the State Service of Special Communications, Ukraine faced nearly 6,000 cyberattacks in 2025 — up by a third on the previous year.
Many business owners still regard 1C or BAS as a routine accounting tool. In reality, using software produced by an aggressor state is not merely a reputational risk — it is a direct technical threat. Hidden backdoors and concealed vulnerabilities may be exploited for espionage, theft of confidential data, or operational disruption. We all remember the Petya/NotPetya attack of 2017, which caused billions in damages and effectively paralysed a significant portion of Ukrainian business.
Replacing 1C/BAS and other russian software is a strategic imperative for Ukraine. We are dealing with systemic dependency built up over decades, which makes it difficult to overcome — but overcome it we must, for the security of every business and the resilience of the Ukrainian economy as a whole.
The problem extends well beyond cyber risk. For years, russian software has entrenched outdated management practices with no connection to international standards. The result: businesses are forced to operate within a framework that undermines efficiency, complicates scaling, and holds back integration into the global economy.
Ukrainian companies currently spend an average of 478.2 person-days per year on tax administration — nearly 24 times more than the EU average. This represents an enormous drain on human, financial and managerial resources. The situation must change. Transitioning to the ERP systems used across developed economies could be a strategic choice for Ukrainian companies, with broader benefits for national competitiveness.
Innoware has spent many years investing in the localisation of international solutions for the Ukrainian market, bridging the significant gap between local and international accounting standards. Drawing on experience across multiple countries, Innoware can offer globally recognised software for accounting and business management, together with expert guidance on implementation informed by extensive practice both in Ukraine and abroad.
The state has already taken initial steps. In early 2026, the use of 1C/BAS was prohibited in government bodies and critical infrastructure facilities. Draft Law No. 13505 has also been registered in the Verkhovna Rada, developed by a working group under the relevant parliamentary committee and coordinated by IT Ukraine Association — of which Innoware is an active member. The draft legislation provides for the full decommissioning of prohibited software by 1 January 2030. That said, businesses should not wait for sanctions or formal deadlines to act.
Our experience at Innoware demonstrates that migration is achievable even in wartime. Smaller companies can already take advantage of ready-made configurations that enable a transition to secure alternatives within a short timeframe. For larger enterprises, a full implementation project should be planned for.
A separate challenge is education. While students continue to train on russian systems simply because they remain free of charge for some universities, educational institutions are effectively preparing graduates to work within an obsolete model.
Abandoning russian software is not solely a matter of security. It is equally a question of Ukraine’s investment attractiveness, its integration into the global economy, and the capacity of Ukrainian business to operate in line with contemporary global standards.
