Estonia braced for new cyber attacks

LONDON -- British newspaper The Guardian reported April 7 that Estonia is bracing itself for a repeat of the 'cyber attacks' which targeted the country last year in the wake of the bronze soldier riots.

Last April hackers bombarded the Estonia's hi-tech computer systems after the controversial decision to move a Soviet war memorial. The attacks targeted government websites and public services but their effects were mitigated by a coordinated response at the Estonian end.

According to The Guardian, senior officials are preparing for hackers to try their luck again this year.

One official is quoted saying there have been smaller attempts to hack into government systems during the last 12 months but they were easily repelled.

A 20-year-old Estonian, Dmitri Galushkevich, has been arrested in relation to those attacks, but Estonia has claimed that the strikes originated largely from Russia. The Russian government has consistently denied any role in organizing cyber attacks on Estonia.