Possible cyberattack halts Estonian art auction

Estonian Art Auctions suspended its auction on Thursday evening after a technical failure that may have been caused by a cyberattack, ERR reported. The auction is due to resume on Friday, October 9, at 6 p.m., starting with the graphic art section where bidding stopped, followed by paintings.

The disruption came after the first work, Jüri Arrak’s 1985 painting “Tiger”, sold for €23,500 against a starting price of €1,600. The auction’s technical partner, Zone, said the problem could be a cyberattack. An initial assessment indicated that the failure was not caused by excessive traffic.

Auctioneer Reigo Kuivjõgi apologised to people who had been following the event online and wanted to bid. He said the auction was postponed to ensure all bidders had an equal opportunity to take part.

The Estonian Artists’ Association is holding the special auction from October 8 to 10 at the ARS art campus, with 162 works up for sale. The event aims to cover a loss of nearly €700,000 that the association suffered in the spring as a result of fraud.