How Russian Threats in the 2000s Turned Estonia into the Go-To Expert on Cyber Defense

Arthur T Knackerbracket writes:

https://edition.cnn.com/2021/06/18/tech/estonia-cyber-security-lessons-intl-cmd/index.html

(CNN)When people like the German Chancellor Angela Merkel or the King of Belgium want to learn more about cybersecurity, they go to Estonia.

The Baltic country runs on the internet. From filing taxes and voting, to registering the birth of a new baby, nearly everything a person might want or need from the government can be done online. It's an approach that's incredibly convenient for Estonia's 1.3 million people -- but it also requires high level of cybersecurity.

Luckily for its residents, Estonia is punching way above its weight when it comes to online safety. It regularly places on top of security rankings. Its capital city of Tallinn is home to NATO's cyber defense hub, the Cooperative Cyber Defence Centre of Excellence. When it took up the rotating presidency of the United Nations Security Council last year, it made cybersecurity one of the policy priorities.

"Estonia digitized a lot sooner than other countries, it was focusing on things like online schooling and online government services and it took a more proactive approach to technology," said Esther Naylor, a international security research analyst at Chatham House.

"And it recognized that it needs to be a secure country in order for citizens to want to use online systems and for businesses to want to do business in Estonia ... and I think that this is why Estonia's approach is often heralded as the model approach," she added.

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