- The Middle East and Africa’s largest and most impactful cybersecurity event comes to a close at Dubai World Trade Centre with the role of the youth and banking institutions among the key topics discussed by professionals.
- Cybersecurity professionals were also recognised as GISEC Global honoured the winners at its first in-person Global CyberDrill event, Cyber Stars competition and Cyber Excellence awards.
Dubai, United Arab Emirates: Global cybersecurity leaders and professionals celebrated innovation and three Guinness World Records, as well as recognising the achievements of individuals as GISEC Global hosted the final day of AI-focused discussions in Dubai on Thursday. The Guinness World Records were achieved by the UAE Cyber Security Council.
Held under the theme of ‘AI-Driven Cyber Resilience’, the third day of the superconnector event put the spotlight on a wide range of topics including the practices of protecting infrastructure, youth empowerment, and dealing with the threats of AI in cybersecurity. The agenda also saw females at the heart of the conversations with the ‘Dark Stage’ hosting 10 sessions, all delivered by women.
In one of the highlight sessions, senior representatives from the UAE, Singapore, Pakistan, Oman and Jordan’s banking institutions, shared insights on how they are protecting their systems and preventing future data threats. Statistics show that finance and insurance organisations globally experienced 566 breaches, leading to over 254 million leaked records.
They emphasised that while AI is a valuable tool for change detection, integrating these technologies still requires human professionals to oversee the day-to-day activities.
The audience also heard from Stéphane Nappo, VP Cybersecurity Director & Global CISO Groupe SEB, France. In a special session, he explained the financial implications of cybersecurity and provided actionable insights for AI-advanced threat detection and Response, as well as AI-Driven Adversarial Attacks Prevention.
The role of the youth was also analysed and the importance of safeguarding them online while fostering their interest in cybersecurity careers. Speaking in a fireside chat session, Her Excellency Minister Ursula Owusu-Ekufu, Minister for Communications and Digitalisation of Republic of Ghana, said: “Children are already experimenting through technology and it is important to make them aware of the dangers that they could possibly face early on while enabling them to have a conscious and clear mind whenever they are online.”
As well as a number of engaging and insightful panel discussions and presentations, the winners of the first in-person Global CyberDrill were revealed. Organised by the International Telecommunication Union (ITU) and hosted by UAE Cyber Security Council, Albania beat Egypt (runner-up) and Turkey (third-placed) to be recognised as the top country in their readiness against cyberattacks and their solutions to enhance capabilities.
It brought together CERTs, CIRTs, and CSIRTs from over 100 countries to strengthen cross-border partnerships and bolster the world’s cybersecurity posture.
The event also recognised the winners of the GISEC Cyber Stars – Unlock Pitch Competition, which aimed to transform the future of cybersecurity innovation by equipping and empowering the next generation of entrepreneurs. The total prize fund was AED 100,000.
The prize winners were: Mindflow (Best Global Startup), SARD Anti Cheat (Best Startup in the Region), BYOS (Best Innovative Idea), CTFAE (Best Emirati Startup) and Luigi Martino, Director at Khalifa University and Dr Nedal Ababneh, Acting Director of Abu Dhabi Polytechnic (Best Innovative Idea – academia).
In the inaugural GISEC Global Cyber Excellence Awards, H.E. Dr. Mohamed Al-Kuwaiti, Head of Cyber Security of UAE, was among the winners, collecting the GISEC Special Awards Personality of the Year accolade.
Other winners included Dr. Reem AlShammari, CyberSecurity and Technology Thought Leader, Energy Sector, Kuwait (GISEC Cybersecurity Woman of the Arab World 2024) and Basim AlRuwaii, CISO, Saudi Aramco (GISEC CISO of the Year 2024).
In a significant achievement for UAE Cyber Security Council, three new Guinness World Records were achieved this week. New marks were set in the ‘Largest Internet of Things awareness lesson’ with 293 participants, while there were 104 nationalities represented in the ‘Most Nationalities in an Internet of Things awareness lesson’ and ‘Most nationalities in a gamified cybersecurity training’ categories, respectively.
The three-day annual event welcomed more than 750 of the world’s foremost cybersecurity companies, as well as 350-plus leading speakers and 20,000 cybersecurity professionals from different countries across the world.
GISEC GLOBAL CYBER EXCELLENCE AWARDS 2024:
GISEC Threat Hunter of the Year 2024:
Ryan R., Senior Threat Hunter, CrowdStrike, USA
GISEC Educator of the Year 2024:
Dr. Eman El-Sheikh, Associate Vice President, UWF Center for Cybersecurity, USA
GISEC Hacker of the Year 2024:
Alina T., Ethical Hacker, Singapore
GISEC Entrepreneur of the Year 2024:
Muhammad Shahmeer, Founder CEO, Younite, Veiliux, Authiun, Pakistan
GISEC Cybersecurity Woman of the Arab World 2024:
Dr. Reem AlShammari, CyberSecurity and Technology Thought Leader, Energy Sector, Kuwait
GISEC Jury Choice Award 2024:
Abeer Khedr, Group Head – Cybersecurity, National Bank of Egypt
GISEC CISO of the Year 2024:
Basim AlRuwaii, CISO, Saudi Aramco
GISEC Special Awards Personality of the Year 2024:
H.E. Dr. Mohamed Al-Kuwaiti, Head of Cyber Security, United Arab Emirates Government
About GISEC Global:
GISEC Global, Middle East & Africa’s largest and most impactful cybersecurity event, will return to Dubai World Trade Centre for its 13th edition taking place from 23-25 April 2024, under the overarching theme of “AI-driven cyber-resilience.” Following the monumental success of 2023, the super-connector event for the region’s cybersecurity industry will bring together over 20,000 attendees, 750 exhibiting brands and 350-plus speakers hailing from over 130 countries. GISEC Global stands as the unrivalled platform for navigating the ever-evolving landscape of cybersecurity.
About Dubai World Trade Centre:
With a vision to make Dubai the world’s leading destination for all major exhibitions, conferences and events, DWTC has evolved from being the regional forerunner of the fast-growing MICE industry into a multi-dimensional business catalyst, focusing on Venues, Events and Real Estate Management. Complementary to the primary service offerings are a range of value-added services from media/advertising, engineering and technical consultation and wedding planning, security, and hospitality.
