The U.S. government will provide Costa Rica with $25 million in assistance to bolster its cybersecurity efforts, President Rodrigo Chaves-Robles announced on Wednesday. 

This is nearly one year after the country suffered a series of devastating ransomware attacks allegedly by a Russian-linked cybercrime group.

The funding comes in response to a conversation between Chaves to U.S. President Joe Biden, he said.

The Costa Rican cybersecurity assistance was announced as U.S. President Joe Biden opened the second Summit for Democracy along with the leaders of Costa Rica, the Netherlands, the Republic of Korea, the Republic of Zambia and others. Costa Rica has also applied to join the Counter Ransomware Initiative announced late last year, the official said.

One of Chaves’ first official acts after being sworn into office on May 8, 2022, was to declare a national emergency as a result of the Conti ransomware attack that struck multiple government agencies on April 17, pilfering the government there of more than 672 gigabytes of information. 

Two days prior, on May 6, the U.S. State Department announced a reward of $10 million for information leading to the identification or location of anybody who held a leadership role with Conti. 

An additional $5 million reward from the U.S. government was available for any information leading to the arrest and or conviction of anybody involved with or attempting to participate in a Conti ransomware attack.

Conti’s attack on Costa Rica hobbled critical services in the country, including tax collection systems and medical appointments. A second attack, later in May, linked to HIVE, hit the country.

 

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