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posted by n1 on Wednesday August 10 2016, @05:32PM   Printer-friendly
from the outsourcing-the-dragnet dept.

The government of Estonia is one of the most cyber-aware governments in the world. Recent reports have suggested that the country has been in discussion with the UK for the establishment of an overseas data embassy. Those same reports suggest that Britain's decision to leave the European Union is making Estonia reconsider the UK, and perhaps favor Luxembourg. If this is true, it could make the loss of business with Estonia the first major cyber casualty of the Brexit.

[...] Although the Ministry here describes the project as simply a data center, it has elsewhere used the term 'virtual data embassy'. This is to differentiate the concept from simple backups that have been stored in overseas embassies for the last ten years. Estonia is facing an issue now that will be faced by more and more nations as electronic government increases: secure mirrors will be required to ensure that the country itself doesn't face downtime in a catastrophe. Estonia, of course faces the additional concern of physical incursion from its neighbor and one-time overlord, Russia.

Taavi Kotka, the Government CIO, wrote, "As part of this research project, we have evaluated methods to ensure that the data and services of and for our citizens, e-residents, and institutions are kept safe, secure, and continuously available. Privacy, security, data protection, and data integrity are central to our government services." He added that after the Snowden revelations, both governments and large corporations are facing a trust-deficit. It is the combination of Snowden's GCHQ revelations combined with the potential effect of Brexit that makes the UK seem a less privacy-centric destination for Estonian government data.


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  • (Score: 3, Insightful) by number6x on Wednesday August 10 2016, @07:05PM

    by number6x (903) on Wednesday August 10 2016, @07:05PM (#386353)

    They are related. Continued membership in the EU may result in many of the GCHQ activities becoming illegal. Britain should not be limited in the suppression of its citizens freedom and liberty by a bunch of continental busy bodies.

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  • (Score: 0, Insightful) by Anonymous Coward on Wednesday August 10 2016, @08:16PM

    by Anonymous Coward on Wednesday August 10 2016, @08:16PM (#386368)

    The GCHQ activities occurred way before BREXIT referendum was even agreed to occur. The GCHQ/NSA activities made the UK and the US look very suspect with any form of digital data.

    To not base some data embasy in the UK because of BREXIT seems odd, especially due to LINX and the link.
    To not base some data embassy due to the activities of GCHQ seems sensible

    ERGO brexit is moot

    • (Score: 0) by Anonymous Coward on Thursday August 11 2016, @08:27AM

      by Anonymous Coward on Thursday August 11 2016, @08:27AM (#386547)

      Did you even read the link you responded to?

      If they stayed there would be additional protections/changes, now that they are leaving there wont be. Seems straightforward enough.

  • (Score: 2) by GungnirSniper on Wednesday August 10 2016, @09:09PM

    by GungnirSniper (1671) on Wednesday August 10 2016, @09:09PM (#386389) Journal

    If they hadn't spent half a century heaping up their funeral pyre they wouldn't need panopticon.