Moody’s Assesses Costa Rica’s Cybersecurity Risks

Moody’s has recently evaluated Costa Rica’s cybersecurity risks, assigning the country a G3 score, where G1 is the best and G5 is the worst. This rating indicates that Costa Rica faces a moderate level of risk in terms of cybersecurity.

1. Criticisms and Challenges A key criticism Moody’s highlighted is the limited coordination between government institutions in Costa Rica. This lack of coordination slowed down the country’s response to cyber attacks that occurred between April 2022 and January 2023, exposing it to corporate governance risks.
2. Positive Aspects and Collaboration On the positive side, Moody’s acknowledged Costa Rica’s willingness to seek external assistance in addressing cybersecurity challenges. The country is keen on joining the Counter Ransomware Initiative, a collaborative project involving 37 countries and 13 companies working together to combat cybersecurity risks.
3. International Support Following the 2022 cyber attacks that jeopardized 27 state entities, Costa Rica received technical assistance from the United States, Spain, and Israel. Recently, the U.S. announced a $25 million disbursement to support the Costa Rican Government’s efforts to strengthen its cybersecurity measures. This funding aims to help establish a cohesive framework and reduce technological gaps that criminals could exploit.

While Costa Rica faces moderate cybersecurity risks, the country’s willingness to collaborate with international partners and seek external assistance demonstrates its commitment to improving its cybersecurity landscape. Continued support and investment in cybersecurity measures will be crucial for the country to mitigate potential threats and safeguard its digital infrastructure.