The damage meant the state portal eesti.ee, services provided by the health insurance fund (EHIF) including issuing digital prescriptions, and several other e-services provided by the State Information System Agency (RIA) were not working.

RIA spokesman Seiko Kuik said that at about 4.30 p.m., RIA learned there was a malfunctioning underground cable in Harju County. On assessment, it was found that the cable had been severely damaged by rats. Due to the extent of the damage, repair work on the cable was started immediately. 

At approximately 7.30pm the eesti.ee portal and EHIF services resumed but the Eesti Loto website was still down at 8 p.m., ERR reported.

Head of the State Network Department Kaido Plovits said, unfortunately, the network was not fully protected from such incidents. "We apologize for any inconvenience and will work hard to fully restore the services soon," Plovits said on Wednesday afternoon.

The state network is increasingly establishing parallel data connections to prevent similar interruptions. Plovits added that, under normal circumstances, the RIA would announce emergency maintenance work in good time, but Wednesday's incident required an immediate response.

There were no interruptions to the ID card or mobile ID.

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