President Rodrigo Chaves says Costa Rica is at war with Conti hackers

The president of Costa Rica says his country is "at war", as cyber-criminals cause major disruption to IT systems of numerous government ministries.

Rodrigo Chaves said hackers infiltrated 27 government institutions, including municipalities and state-run utilities.

The Conti ransomware cartel, which is thought to be run from Russia, has upped its ransom demand to $20m (£16m).

The criminals posted an appeal online to Costa Ricans to "go out on the street and demand payment".

Mr Chaves held a press conference on Monday to outline his "Plan for Implementation of Cyber-security Measures". read more