10
EESTI ELU reedel, 3. juunil 2022 — Friday, June 3, 2022
Nr. 22
Estonia’s digital paradox: legacies and lessons Natalie Jenkins Estonia has established itself as a leader in innovation and technology. With programs like e-Voting, e-Residency, e-Governance, e-Health, e-Tax, and e-Prescription, the country has successfully integrated key government infrastruc tures into the digital realm. But high internet traffic presents an increased vulnera bility to cyberattacks. The phrase commonly refers to when someone deliberately enters computer systems with malicious intent to either destroy, steal, or manipulate data. With Estonia’s high degree of digitalization, is it more prone to cyberattacks? Some say yes. Estonia is thus faced with a digital paradox. Its strategic and innovative use of the cyber realm, which has propelled the country to prosperity, is also its greatest liability. Despite this, Estonia is heralded for its strong cyber security and defence capabili ties. The nation is currently ranked 5th out of 160 countries on the National Cyber Security Index. For context, Canada ranks 36th, and the U.S. is 21st. What explains Estonia’s suc cess, and what lessons can the rest of the world learn from it? The 2007 cyberattacks Estonia’s journey to becom ing a leading nation in cyber security began in 2007 after a series of politically-motivated
June 01, 2022
A vision for the future of St. Peter’s Church The Friends of St. Peter’s believe that with a proper Management Plan and com mitted leadership, St. Peter’s can be a part of our lives and the lives of future generations for years to come. We believe that St. Peter’s facilities can once again become an acces sible hub for both Estonian and local community activities in Toronto. We are confident that the St. Peter’s community, once given an opportunity to assess all the issues, will show that it shares this vision of St. Peter’s future and will participate in it actively. We are heartened by the fact that over 676 people have to date signed our on-line petition to save the church. We encour age everyone who has not yet done so to show their support by signing the petition whether they belong to our church or not at: https://www.change.org /p/vote-no-if-you-are-against-
external cyberattacks took down a number of society’s vital functions. Over the course of three weeks, massive waves of spam disrupted or took down websites for major media out lets, banks, and government ministries. “The attacks were aimed at the essential electronic infra structure of the Republic of Estonia,” said then-Estonian minister of defence Jaak Aaviksoo in an interview with Wired Magazine. “This affected the majority of the Estonian population… This was the first time that a botnet threatened the national security of an entire nation.” At the time, Estonia was quite digitally advanced but lacked any cohesive domestic cybersecurity strategy. Nor was cybersecurity taken seriously at the international level. It was not clearly stated in NATO’s Article 5, which stipulates that an attack against one NATO member is an attack against them all, whether a cyberattack would invoke a legitimate allied military response. Digital transformations The consequences of the at tacks served as a wake-up call for Estonians to consider cyber security as a vital aspect of national security. Beginning in 2008, Estonia became one of the first countries to produce a cohesive and all-encompassing cybersecurity strategy. e-Esto nia.com has reported that Klaid Mägi, head of the Incident
the-relocation-of-thecolumbarium-and-sale-of-thechurch-save-st-peter-s-estonianlutheran-church-of-torontocanada Our Legacy – Pastor Oskar Puhm 1958 Pastor Puhm was proud of our accomplishments as a congrega tion. In 1958 he wrote: “It is with gladness in our hearts, that here on foreign soil we have been able to establish our own congregation and church in our mother-tongue. Stretching toward the heavens, this building is not only a reli gious temple, but also a national building – where all which is familiar, holy and dear to us, we may teach and bequeath to our children.” “Rõõmustame südamest, et ka võõral pinnal oleme võinud rajada oma emakeelse kogudse ja kiriku. See taeva poole siru tav hoone pole mitte üksi usuline tempel, vaid ka rahvus lik koda – kus me tohime kõike, mis meile on omane, püha ja kallis, õpetada ja pärandada oma lastele.” Our Heritage – Our Church A Heritage Designation, which the Friends of St. Peter’s support, has been applied for our church. With its unique
Science Node. Past’s advice seems particu larly relevant to our current age. Historically and with the cur rent Ukrainian crisis, Russia has been persistent in its spread of misinformation and propaganda. The West is also no stranger to combating fake news. Exposure to constant “alternative facts” has led to decreased trust in democratic institutions and mainstream media amongst the public, according to a study by the Harvard Kennedy School.
Photo: Johns Hopkins
Response Department (CERTEE), says that “Estonia’s pre paredness to handle cyber crises has significantly increased over the past decade.” Estonia’s ability to swiftly produce new policy, collaborate across private and public do mains, and internationally with intergovernmental organisations has separated it from other countries that still lag behind in cybersecurity. “Estonia’s current cyber security is bolstered by highfunctioning e-government infra structure, reliable digital identity, mandatory security baseline for all government authorities, and a central system for monitoring, reporting and resolving inci dents,” says Mägi. Most im portantly, there is a common understanding that cyber se curity can only be ensured through cooperation and that a joint contribution is required at all levels – state, private sector and individuals.”
architecture, it was designed to be a manifestation of the in domitable courage and iron determination of our forebearers to resist the brutal despotism that drove them from their homes and is once again devas tating the lives of millions in Eastern Europe. In our view, this is the time to protect rather than abandon our cultural icons, the symbols of faith and free dom. We ask you to join us in that effort, to help convince the Heritage Planners that it should be designated. https://www.ipe titions.com/petition/st-pe ters-heritage-designation We need all members, past, and present, and all our friends and community members to support this designation, regard less of where you live now. Please support the Heritage Designation Application to en sure the future protection of this architectural and historic gem. Who are the Friends of St. Peter’s? We are a growing group of resolute individuals who care and believe in the future of our church. We are proud to be part of the effort to save St. Peter’s. We are not exclusive to our church or the congregation membership. We welcome all
Lessons to be learned In an age where it is easier to find misinformation than ob jective truths, it seems difficult to imagine that Estonia has been able to digitise without much pushback from the public. Yet, while others may be hesitant to subject their personal infor mation to a “cloud network” controlled by the government, Estonians see little controversy with having digital fingerprints. Liisa Past, Chief Research Officer for Cybersecurity of the Estonian Information System Authority, said that the success of Estonia’s digital revolution can be attributed to the trust the government has developed with its population over the past 15 years. “One of the lessons we’ve learned is that you don’t just change the system abruptly. You introduce these things slowly as an enhancement. Most people will prefer convenience,” she said in an interview with
like-minded people to join with us in the project of ensuring the secure future of St. Peter’s. We acknowledge the support of 676 people, to date, who have signed the petition to save the church. We hope that some of you will take the next step to become a “Friend of St. Peter’s.” You can find more details about us on our website www. friends-of-st-peters.com Share with us Your Vision for St. Peter’s We look to you to help us create the vision for our church which best fits our needs. Please share your vision for the church by e-mailing us at savepeetrikirik@gmail.com Proposed so far by people in terested in rejuvenating the church: • Make the church a living and growing part of our community • Honour the memory of our forebearers whose perseverance is our bedrock • Celebrate the traditions and Christian values that define us • Inspire worship, spiritual growth, and learning that is relevant to our times • Make the church relevant to the surrounding neighbourhood • Foster an open and welcom ing church that serves the needs
But implementing cyber defence mechanisms requires cooperation from the public and government. While it is good to critically evaluate political developments, cynicism to the extent that it elicits paranoia is not productive. The more push back from the public there is against new policies, the more difficult it will be for govern ments to effectively implement cyber defence plans. Vul nerability to cyberattacks will increase. If anything, we should fol low Estonia’s path of building trust over time. This is vital to ensuring the longevity and vi tality of our democratic institu tions. First, governments need to be responsive and account able to the public. Investments that governments make – for instance, in cybersecurity policy programs – should demonstrate clear benefits to the public to reaffirm the idea that the government is acting on their behalf. The public’s reaction to these should be taken into account for future developments. All in all, achieving good cyber hygiene is a journey, not a destination.
of all congregants by integrating and embracing the whole family • Nurture a culture of inclusive ness with programming for people of all ages • Seek opportunities to opti mize the usage and income potential of church facilities • Engage the resourcefulness, energy, and talents of communi ty members to realize the goal of creating a sustainable com munity church that ensures its future viability • Support the Heritage designa tion application to ensure the future protection of this architectural and historic gem Let us begin the transfor mation process together. We will use your input to help define our vision and our objective. The action plan to achieve this comes next. Please support us by e-mail ing us to help fulfill our vision. Volunteer to help. e-mail us at savepeetrikirik@ gmail.com Friends of St. Peter’s Church ILO-KATRYN MAIMETS, TIINA JENKINS, TIIU ROISER, TOOMAS TREI, NICK CHOROWIEC, VÄINO EINOLA, TOM ARGET
