Roughly half the sites had recovered by the morning of October 29th.

The identity of the culprits isn't clear. The scale and focus are reminiscent of the attacks Georgia faced during its brief 2008 war with Russia, but the choice of image casts doubt on Russia's involvement. ZDNet noted that Saakashvili was and is pro-Western, and is still warmly regarded as a reformer despite leaving for the Ukraine (where he's now a citizen) in 2013 over hotly disputed corruption charges. It would be odd for Russia to use the ex-leader as part of its usual attempt to fuel social tensions. And when Georgia held its latest presidential election recently, in October 2018, there's no immediate political gain to be had.

Whoever is responsible, the cyberattack might underscore weaknesses in Georgia's security. Researchers said the Pro-Service attack wasn't particularly sophisticated, and Radio Liberty's local service pointed out that the country is sometimes dependent on Russian online services. City councils use a Russian email service, for instance. If Russia was involved, Georgia might have made itself an unnecessarily easy target.