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Belisario Contreras

Senior Director, Global Security and Technology Strategy
Belisario Contreras
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BContreras@Venable.com
Washington, DC
T +1 202.344.4565

Belisario Contreras possesses a deep understanding of international legislative and policy-making processes involving information technology and cybersecurity and has fostered fruitful partnerships with various stakeholders, including high-level government officials, the private sector, and civil society representatives. Belisario is highly experienced in designing, managing, and monitoring international cooperation projects. He previously served as the manager/head of the Organization of American States (OAS) cybersecurity program, where he spearheaded strategic partnerships with key international actors and positioned the organization’s program as a leading initiative on cyber capacity-building issues across the Americas and the world.

Belisario has a demonstrated history of advancing thought leadership on such issues as cloud security, cyber regulation, data privacy, 5G security, financial inclusion, and international norms, among other relevant policy and technical topics. As an Oxford University Martin Fellow, he oversaw the outreach and dissemination of top practices to promote the Cybersecurity Capacity Building Capability Maturity Model’s development and implementation in 32 Latin American and Caribbean countries. Belisario previously served as a co-chair of the Global Future Council on Cybersecurity and was a member of the Global Cybersecurity Advisory Board at the World Economic Forum (WEF). He was also part of the FinCyber Initiative High-Level Advisory Group at the Carnegie Endowment for International Peace, where he provided crucial technical input on the international strategy for cybersecurity and the Global Financial System (2021–2024) presented to the G7 and G20 presidents.

Related Practices

Related Industries

Insights

Thought Leadership

March 29, 2023

Latin American Companies, Governments Need More Focus on Cybersecurity
Latin American Companies, Governments Need More Focus on Cybersecurity

October 07, 2022

3 Actions Latin American Leaders Must Take to Reduce Risk of Cyberattacks
3 Actions Latin American Leaders Must Take to Reduce Risk of Cyberattacks

July 27, 2022

LATAM CISO: Cybersecurity Network at the Regional Level
LATAM CISO: Cybersecurity Network at the Regional Level
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Events

August 18, 2022

Costa Rica's Recovery From Cyber-Attacks: A Way Forward
Costa Rica's Recovery From Cyber-Attacks: A Way Forward

Recent News

July 13, 2022

Latin America in Focus Features Belisario Contreras on Cyber Attacks in Costa Rica and the Region’s Digital Vulnerabilities
Latin America in Focus Features Belisario Contreras on Cyber Attacks in Costa Rica and the Region’s Digital Vulnerabilities

Credentials
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Education

  • M.A. Latin American Studies, Government and Security Georgetown University 2012
  • B.A. Business Administration Universidad Francisco de Paula Santander 2007

Professional Memberships and Activities

  • Oxford Martin fellow, University of Oxford
  • Former member, High-Level Advisory Group, FinCyber Initiative, Carnegie Endowment for International Peace
  • Former member, Advisory Board, Centre for Cybersecurity (C4C), World Economic Forum (WEF)
  • Former co-chair, Global Future Council on Cybersecurity, World Economic Forum (WEF)