Dubai: His Highness Sheikh Mansoor bin Mohammed bin Rashid Al Maktoum, Chairman of the Dubai Council for Border Crossing Points Security, on Wednesday visited the 10th edition of ‘GISEC Global 2022’, the Middle East and North Africa (MENA) region’s most influential and connected cybersecurity event.
Sheikh Mansoor toured the event that was organised by the Dubai World Trade Centre (DWTC), accompanied by Major General Talal Hamid Belhoul Al Falasi, Director-General of the State Security Department in Dubai.
The chairman also witnessed the launch of the ‘Dubai Cyber Innovation Park’ (DCIP) and two digital programmes, ‘Taresh’ and ‘Al-Kashef’, which were developed by the Dubai Electronic Security Center (DESC).
Organised in close partnership with the UAE’s most influential cyber entities, including the UAE Cyber Security Council, Dubai Electronic Security Center, Dubai Police, Telecommunications and Digital Government Regulatory Authority, the three-day event provided a platform for discussing the region’s strategic cybersecurity agendas.
As part of the event, the UAE Cyber Security Council hosted the Global Cybersecurity Congress and the first ever National Bug Bounty programme, featuring over 100 international ethical hackers.
Innovation park
The newly-launched ‘Dubai Cyber Innovation Park (DECIP)’ will act as DESC’s research and knowledge arm, and will focus on developing specialised talents in the field of cyber security. The Park will also support efforts to achieve the objectives of the Dubai Cyber Security Strategy, which seeks to make Dubai a global leader in innovation, safety and security.
DCIP will play a key role in developing new technologies that support Dubai’s economic growth and efforts in the fields of smart transformation and cyber security.
The ‘Taresh’ system was launched to detect security vulnerabilities across e-mail services of various government agencies in Dubai. The system enhances security measures adopted for all e-mail services and combats attacks through providing a comprehensive visibility of the security situation.
Meanwhile, the innovative ‘Al-Kashef’ system extends coverage to include other security aspects of the infrastructure. The system works automatically and proactively to identify and address weaknesses in the internal network of government agencies, ensuring their ability address any vulnerabilities. It also enables them to strengthen their systems, software and devices to reduce any risks and cyberattacks.
The new systems were developed as a part of the Dubai Cyber Index, a first-of-its-kind initiative launched by Sheikh Hamdan bin Mohammed bin Rashid Al Maktoum, Crown Prince of Dubai and Chairman of The Executive Council of Dubai, in 2020. The new cybersecurity systems have been added to the TIRS platform, which was designed to enhance detection and reporting of security vulnerabilities and threats across vital websites of government entities and other system participants to ensure proper actions are taken.
Yousef Hamad Al Shaibani, Director-General of the Dubai Electronic Security Center, said: “The launch of the Dubai Cyber Innovation Park and the two systems are part of our efforts to shape a future where security, safety, and prosperity are ensured, both in the digital and physical worlds. We aim to harness advanced technologies and utilise them to promote innovation and build highly secure systems to protect Dubai’s community, in line with the leadership’s vision for Dubai to be at the forefront of safe cities and communities in cyberspace.”
He added: “The Dubai Cyber Innovation Park features training programmes and research laboratories that embrace cybersecurity innovations and drive research and development in the field, in collaboration with notable international companies and experts.”
More than 300 global cybersecurity brands were showcasing cutting-edge technologies at GISEC Global 2022. The event hosted leading international and regional innovators such as Huawei, Microsoft, Spire Solutions, Palo Alto Networks, Amazon Web Services and Honeywell.
