United Arab Emirates — Cyber Threat Profile
The United Arab Emirates has established one of the Middle East's most advanced cybersecurity ecosystems, driven by smart city expansion, digital government services, and critical energy infrastructure protection. National cyber strategy emphasizes resilience across oil and gas, aviation, finance, and telecommunications sectors. The UAE faces persistent targeting from state-sponsored espionage actors and financially motivated cybercriminal groups seeking geopolitical and economic intelligence. Federal authorities coordinate national defense through centralized cyber governance frameworks, supported by international partnerships and private sector integration. Investments in AI-enabled security operations and workforce development continue to elevate the country's defensive maturity.- National CERT/CSIRT: aeCERT
- World Cybercrime Index 2024 (origin significance): 1.55 / 100, #24 worldwide
- Secure Internet servers per 1M people (2024): 4,192.3 (source: World Bank)
- Internet users (2024): 100.0% of population (source: World Bank)
Threat actors targeting United Arab Emirates
- Anonymous Sudan Hacktivist
- Mirage Kitten APT
- MuddyWater APT
- OilRig APT
- RansomHub Ransomware · 12 incident(s)
- Qilin Ransomware · 8 incident(s)
- Stormous Hacktivist · 7 incident(s)
- DragonForce Ransomware · 6 incident(s)
- INC Ransom Ransomware · 6 incident(s)
- LockBit Ransomware · 6 incident(s)
- KillSec Ransomware · 5 incident(s)
- Everest Ransomware · 4 incident(s)
- FunkSec Ransomware · 4 incident(s)
- Medusa Ransomware Ransomware · 4 incident(s)
- APT73 Ransomware · 3 incident(s)
- Lynx Ransomware Ransomware · 3 incident(s)
- NightSpire Ransomware · 3 incident(s)
- The Gentlemen Ransomware · 3 incident(s)
- Handala Hacktivist · 2 incident(s)
- Akira Ransomware · 1 incident(s)
- Brain Cipher Ransomware · 1 incident(s)
- Cl0p Ransomware · 1 incident(s)
- Coinbase Cartel Ransomware · 1 incident(s)
- Global Secret Group Ransomware · 1 incident(s)
- Gunra Ransomware · 1 incident(s)
- Hunters International Ransomware · 1 incident(s)
- Krybit Ransomware · 1 incident(s)
- Lamashtu Ransomware · 1 incident(s)
- Lazarus Group APT · 1 incident(s)
- MedusaLocker Ransomware · 1 incident(s)
- Meow Ransomware · 1 incident(s)
- Payload Ransomware · 1 incident(s)
- Rhysida Ransomware · 1 incident(s)
- SafePay Ransomware · 1 incident(s)
- Sarcoma Ransomware · 1 incident(s)
- Snatch Ransomware · 1 incident(s)
- APT35 APT
Most targeted sectors
- Business & Professional Services 17 incident(s)
- Technology 11 incident(s)
- Financial Services 6 incident(s)
- Government & Public Sector 6 incident(s)
- Healthcare 6 incident(s)
- Energy & Utilities 5 incident(s)
- Manufacturing 4 incident(s)
- Transportation & Logistics 4 incident(s)
- Construction 3 incident(s)
- Hospitality & Tourism 3 incident(s)
- Retail & Consumer 3 incident(s)
- Education & Research 1 incident(s)
Recent claimed incidents
- Emirates Flight Catering 2026-08-05 · Hospitality
- NIMR Oil 2026-08-05 · Energy & Utilities
- Al-Futtaim Group 2026-08-05 · Retail & E-Commerce
- harwal.net 2026-07-29
- Stratos Network 2026-07-26 · Technology
- Midal Cables 2026-07-14 · Manufacturing
- Navana Real Estate 2026-07-10
- Inter Power Engineering 2026-07-09 · Energy
- Al Dhow Group 2026-07-01 · Transportation/Logistics
- Dolrad 2026-07-01
- Steegaa Interior 2026-07-01 · Consumer Services
- Al Khaja Holding 2026-06-20 · Business Services
- AASA CP Holding Company (AASA Group) 2026-06-19
- Corniche Hotel Abu Dhabi 2026-06-12 · Hospitality and Tourism
- Al Shafar GRC 2026-06-12 · Business Services