Estonia seeks more cybersecurity funding as attacks multiply

Estonia’s government wants to increase investment in cybersecurity, including the protection of digital voting, as attacks against the country become widespread and increasingly involve artificial intelligence, ERR reported. But the government has not allocated the requested funding.

Joonas Heiter, head of the Information System Authority, said hackers once searched manually for security vulnerabilities, while machines can now do so at scale. He said Estonia has no information about any fully AI-driven cyberattack having been carried out in the country, though such attacks are known elsewhere. The number of incidents causing damage doubles each year, he added.

The government has not agreed on how to address the problem. Prime Minister Kristen Michal said the necessary funding was available and could be reallocated within the sector if needed. Justice and Digital Affairs Minister Liisa-Ly Pakosta said her ministry received no additional money and would have to find funding by cutting other expenses.

Cybersecurity improvements require an additional five million euros next year and more than 20 million euros over four years, Pakosta said. She said funding would be found to protect digital voting if necessary, including from the government’s reserve fund. The work requires both technology and people to operate it, she said.

Arne Koitmäe, head of the State Electoral Service, said officials were prepared for exceptional circumstances and could switch to paper ballots if the voting system could no longer be trusted.