SAN JOSE — Costa Rica’s national health system declared a cybersecurity emergency Thursday after a coordinated ransomware attack paralyzed hospital appointment scheduling, prescription drug inventory and laboratory result systems across 12 public hospitals. The attack forced doctors to revert to paper records and delayed treatment for an estimated 14,000 patients.
The BlackCat/ALPHV ransomware group claimed responsibility, saying it had encrypted more than 800 servers and was demanding $15 million in cryptocurrency. The government said it would not pay the ransom and was working with Microsoft and CrowdStrike to restore systems. President Rodrigo Chaves declared a national emergency and ordered the closure of all public health system internet-connected systems pending a security audit.
Diego Vargas is Media Hook’s Latin America Correspondent.
Written by Diego Vargas, Latin America Correspondent