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If you believe the dreadful warnings released over the last few weeks by software behemoth Microsoft, entire computer networks across Costa Rica will suddenly become ultra-vulnerable and come under relentless cyber attacks perpetrated by nefarious hacker gangs counting down the days to April 8^th, 2014. On that day, Microsoft will stop providing support to Windows XP, the most popular PC operating system in Costa Rica. What will happen to banking, government, public health care, law enforcement, and even sportsbooks computer networks?

According to a recent article published by USA Today, nearly one third of all computers around the world currently run some version of Windows XP. Since old habits are extremely hard to break in Costa Rica, the percentage of computer systems and networks powered by Windows XP is very likely higher than a third. This is the default operating system in many government offices, particularly those that do not receive IT support very often; these include public schools, Fuerza Publica, La Caja, etc.

When you add the numerous banks, Point-of-Sale (POS) retail systems, Internet cafes, small businesses, and automated teller machine (ATM) networks still running Windows XP in Costa Rica, the number of potentially vulnerable computers after April 8^th, 2014 is probably closer to 50 percent. It’s not just Costa Rica; take a look at this Reuters report published by the Times of India:

LONDON/NEW YORK: Banks around the world, consumed with meeting more stringent capital regulations, will miss a deadline to upgrade outdated software for automated teller machines (ATMs) and face additional costs to Microsoft to keep them secure.

The US software company first warned that it was planning to end support for Windows XP in 2007, but only one-third of the world’s 2.2 million ATMs which use the system will have been upgraded to a new platform [.]

To ensure the machines are protected against viruses and hackers many banks have agreed deals with Microsoft to continue supporting their ATMs until they are upgraded [.]

Britain’s five biggest banks – Lloyds Banking Group, Royal Bank of Scotland, HSBC, Barclays and Santander UK – either have, or are in the process of negotiating, extended support contracts with Microsoft.

It seems, however, that bankers are not alone. Windows XP users in Costa Rica and around the world are hunkering down even as Microsoft continues to issue stern warnings. According to GeekWire:

Microsoft is trying to convince business owners that it’s time to retire their Windows XP installations, and start using a more modern operating system. However, Microsoft is facing an uphill battle with budget-conscious business owners who aren’t looking to undertake the cost of upgrading their computer systems. Especially since Windows 8.1 hasn’t received the glowing reception Microsoft hoped for, getting people to upgrade could be a tough sell.

To make matters worse, the Municipality of San Jose is still offering residents free “Introduction to Windows XP” courses at some district libraries. Also, major computer security firms such as AVG and Symantec will continue to support XP users for about as long as a year after April 8^th. Even Google has announced that it will keep an eye on security issues for its Chrome Internet browser XP users. These are essentially enablers for business owners and individuals in Costa Rica who certainly don’t need any encouragement in the procrastination department.

RevistaIT now, an IT publication based in Costa Rica recently published a report that featured comments by Kaspersky Lab Latin America about the dangers faced by ATM networks: Many of them are still running XP and are only protected by server firewalls. Last year, Kaspersly Lab warned about a sophisticated malware exploit in Mexico that specifically targeted Windows XP ATMS.

The Costa Rica Star has previously reported on sophisticated ATM hacks in this country, which supports the belief by many computer security analysts that hackers are waiting to pounce after April 8^th.