Hybrid CoE Paper 8: Cyber deterrence: A case study on Estonia’s policies and practice

Shortly after the cyberattacks of 2007 against Estonian websites and digital services, the Estonian government endorsed its first national-level cybersecurity strategy focused on the protection of critical information infrastructure. Since then, Estonia has benefitted from making cyber deterrence a cornerstone of its cybersecurity policies. This Hybrid CoE Paper looks at how successful the country has been in implementing cyber deterrence. The study illustrates that Estonia has effectively prevented serious harm against its networks from global cyber campaigns that severely affected many other countries. Based on the Estonian case study, policy recommendations for the EU and NATO will be made.