The "I LOVE YOU" computer virus widely affected computers in the Baltic states on May 4, hitting offices and companies across the region, including banks, heating utilities and presidents' offices.

Computers were infected by receiving e-mails entitled "I LOVEYOU." The so-called "love bug" spread by infiltrating a computer's address books and sending copies of itself to that person's contacts. In Estonia, many businesses reported receiving their initial infection from the office of President Lennart Meri. Lithuania reported a mutant variant of the bug, a virus that invited e-mail recipients out for a cup of coffee. A Lithuanian-language note in the subject line of the infected e-mail read, "Susitikim shi vakara kavos puodukui"—which in English means, "Let's meet tonight for a cup of coffee." Viik, the Estonian IT advisor, said that within a half-hour that the bug struck the first computers in Estonia, local radios began warning people not to open the suspect e-mails. He said that may have prevented even wider infection. . Local servers also activated filters that screened out e-mails with any subject line similar to "I LOVE YOU". He said that stopped many computers from ever receiving the virus-carrying message.