“Since November 18, 2025, the addresses of defense and military facilities have been hidden in Ukraine for security purposes, but there are risks of corruption loopholes.”, — write: www.pravda.com.ua
How it protects the defense sector, what are the advantages for security and why it still opens loopholes for corruption, whether it is possible to look at the addresses of legal entities not related to the country’s defense – we will find out in this column.
What exactly is hidden behind “defense”? Law No. 4576-IX hid the exact addresses and cadastral numbers of property belonging to companies connected to the defense complex (OPK). This is a completely reasonable step and it should have been made as early as 2022 in order to make it impossible to use open registries to search for factories or other strategically important objects.
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The aggressor country will continue to target our defense enterprises. Open registers really became a source of information for the enemy: with the help of addresses and cadastral numbers, the Russians planned strikes on targets – from Motor Sichi to drone manufacturers.
From now on, for such companies, extracts from the State Register of Real Estate Rights indicate only the region, without detailing the district or street. Cadastral numbers of land plots are also hidden. Defense companies can specify a fictitious address for communication with the state – this protects them from possible spies and cyber attacks.
Who benefits the most? The official mantra of the authorities: “This is to protect the defense-industrial complex from Russian drones and missiles.” However, the reality looks more ambiguous – this was a blow to transparency, which made it difficult for anti-corruption bodies or journalists to work.
Although the law only limits defensive entities, corrupt people can quickly find ways to adapt. They can transfer assets to companies that outwardly appear to be defense-related, for example, register limited liability companies as suppliers of “logistics for the armed forces” or “dual-purpose goods”. Thus, the address becomes unavailable.
Let’s take as an example people’s deputy Igor Fris, the lobbyist of this law. His family owns 23 objects in the Carpathians – hotels, restaurants – through companies that can now claim the status of “defense”. Previously, the information was available, but now, if a company “requalifies”, only the area is visible. Judges and prosecutors can do the same: they will be able to hide assets by registering them to retired mothers or through the authorized capital of “defense” companies. There are security benefits, but they also open loopholes for those with something to hide.
Impact on business and everyday life The restrictions only affect defense companies. For other legal entities, such as cafes, IT companies or similar businesses, addresses in open registers remain available. If the enterprise is not related to the defense sector, its location can be found without obstacles.
For example, a drone manufacturer in Kharkiv now operates without fear of the address being leaked, while the addresses of a regular manufacturing business can still be checked online.
The process of obtaining information about real estate or land owned by a legal entity not related to the defense sector has not changed. However, if the LLC is “defensive” in nature, then you need to additionally apply to the TsNAP for complete data.
Will we find a way out of this trap? The change in the situation depends on the resolutions of the Cabinet of Ministers of Ukraine: they can specify the mechanisms for verifying the validity of defense enterprises.
After the end of the war, opening the registries back may become more difficult. Those who enjoy new loopholes for corruption today will not want to miss such an opportunity tomorrow. Because why change something that already works. For them, martial law is a universal reason for any anti-democratic decision.
Conclusion: security won, but corruption did not go away Restricting access to registers really helped to protect strategic objects from attacks and significantly reduced the amount of information leakage – this is a significant factor during wartime. But the war is not an excuse to return Ukraine to the 90s, when property was hidden through numerous front companies, and journalists became victims of attacks because of their work.
The saddest thing about this is that we protected the country from an external enemy, but created an opportunity for abuse by internal “allies”.
Transparency is not a luxury, but an effective weapon against corruption, which steals billions from the army. And today these weapons can be taken away from us.
However, the truth, like drones, always finds a target, even through closed registers.
Alina Kaluzhynovaa lawyer in the business support practice at Juscutum
A column is a type of material that reflects exclusively the point of view of the author. It does not claim objectivity and comprehensive coverage of the topic in question. The point of view of the editors of “Economic Pravda” and “Ukrainian Pravda” may not coincide with the author’s point of view. The editors are not responsible for the reliability and interpretation of the given information and perform exclusively the role of a carrier.