Last year Estonia suffered weeks of debilitating cyber attacks after it took down an old statue of a Russian Red Army soldier in its capital, Tallinn. The denial of service attacks that followed crashed computers in many government departments. Estonia blamed Russia, but Moscow has always denied any involvement.
12 months on from that event, a cyber defense hub has now opened in Estonia. It will be funded and staffed by seven Nato nations – Germany, Slovakia, Latvia, Lithuania, Italy and Spain. By the time it becomes fully operational at the end of August, the hub will have about 30 workers, who will research and train on cyber defense issues. Even the US is sending an observer.
In a statement at the signing ceremony in Brussels for the hub, Nato spokesman James Appathurai said,
"We have seen in Estonia that a cyber attack can swiftly become an issue of national security. Cyber attacks can cripple societies."
