One of Russia’s smallest neighbors, Estonia, may begin to create big trouble for them in cyber-space. Estonia has recently come forward claiming that they were one of the first nations targeted by Russian state-sponsored attacks. The Estonian military is in the process of standing up a cyber-command unit for both offensive and defensive purposes. The cyber-realm is nothing new for Estonia. They are the home of the NATO Cyber-defense center and was responsible for organizing the EU’s first cyber exercise. Prior to this, Estonia’s cyber forces involved a large number of civilian volunteers as well as reservists who have focused on cyber-defense. Colonel Andres Hairk, the head of Estonia’s cyber-command unit was quoted as saying “to prepare for defense, you need to know how to attack.” Russia has denied any involvement in all of the attacks that Estonia claimed Russia has launched against them. Russia has been found to routinely probe the defenses of their neighbors in the region. With the creation of Estonia’s new cyber-command they should expect that Russian attackers will probably begin to slowly test their capabilities over the coming months.
