The recent attacks on Estonia’s business and government computer networks may have been a retaliatory gesture, generated in Russia, reports the Associated Press.
Over 1 million computers worldwide were affected by the attacks since Estonia moved a Soviet-era war memorial from downtown Tallinn. The attacks began after the removal of the Bronze Soldier, a statue commemorating Red Army soldiers killed fighting the Nazis. Estonia moved the statue from a downtown Tallinn square to a military cemetery outside the city.
Estonia’s defense minister said that currently there is not enough evidence to be absolutely sure Russia played a role “but it indicates a possibility,” Defense Minister Jaak Aaviksoo told the AP.
Moscow said Estonia was desecrating the memory of Red Army soldiers, but many Estonians consider the statue a bitter reminder of five decades of Soviet occupation.
“We identified in the initial attacks IP numbers from the Russian governmental offices,” Aaviksoo said, referring to Internet addresses that can be traced.
It is also a possibility that the attackers used a fake Kremlin Internet address to discredit Russia.
The Russian government has denied Estonia’s accusations. Spokesman Dmitry Peskov said the attackers must have used a fake Kremlin Internet address to tarnish Russian authorities.
“They started after we discovered instructions on Russian Web sites telling when, why and what to attack,” said spokesman Dmitry Peskov.
NATO has sent a cyberexpert to Estonia to help amid concerns that the military alliance might also be targeted, a NATO official said Thursday.
