Dr. Al-Kuwaiti’s outstanding contributions in advancing global cybersecurity recognised

DUBAI: H.E. Dr. Mohamed Hamad Al-Kuwaiti, Head of the UAE Cybersecurity Council, was recognised and celebrated by hundreds of cyber leaders from across the world for his outstanding contributions towards advancing global cybersecurity and digital transformation.

Dr. Al-Kuwaiti, who is also the Head of Cyber Security for the UAE Government, was presented with the Cybersecurity Excellence Awards’ Global Leadership Award at GISEC Global 2023, the Middle East’s largest cybersecurity event, in recognition of his bold mission to spread cyber awareness and culture, develop cyber talent, empower cross-border collaboration, and position the UAE at the forefront of international cyber resilience.

Since taking on the mantle as the UAE’s Head of Cyber Security two years ago, Dr. Al-Kuwaiti has spearheaded several key initiatives, including the UAE Cybersecurity Council’s award-winning Cyber Pulse initiative, which provides cyber culture awareness on a national level, helping UAE citizens understand the impact of cyber-attacks and providing guidance to protect themselves and their families from digital threats.

In a dual-award winning week, Cyber Pulse also won the International Telecommunication Union’s Ethical Dimensions of the Information Society award for its “outstanding contributions towards strengthening the implementation of the World Summit on the Information Society outcomes” in Geneva, Switzerland.

Over the past 10 years, Dr. Al-Kuwaiti has been actively involved in more than 500 cyber security lectures, workshops and conferences, as a keynote speaker and thought leader, impacting more than five million beneficiaries through social networks, conferences and more.

Under his leadership, the UAE has advanced 42 positions in the United Nation’s Global Cyber Security Index, rising to fifth place globally in 2020 from 47th place in 2017.

Dr. Al-Kuwaiti’s timely and pro-active intervention played a key role in lowering the exposure of UAE to cyber-attacks during the global pandemic, and there was a marked reduction in phishing attacks, identity thefts, social engineering scams and other common attacks perpetrated by cyber attackers since His Excellency instituted pro-active preventive measures to reduce the attack surface and secure the UAE cyber space.

“This award reflects the global recognition of the constant efforts made by the UAE in the field of cybersecurity, and an inevitable result of the directions and visions of the country’s wise leadership, in addition to cooperation by all national teams, which contributed to enhancing the UAE rank on global competitiveness indicators,” said Dr. Al Kuwaiti.

“The UAE Cybersecurity Council follows a clear strategy aimed at creating a safe and resilient cyber environment that helps organisations, institutions and individuals achieve their potential, creates a safe digital society, and promotes a positive digital identity.”

“The Cybersecurity Excellence Awards’ Global Leadership Award elevates the efforts of the UAE Cybersecurity Council to achieve cyber stability locally and regionally, while encouraging more work and innovation to strengthen the UAE’s global leading position in cybersecurity and improving its national capabilities in this area.”

The 2023 Cybersecurity Excellence Awards honour individuals and organisations that demonstrate excellence, innovation and leadership in information security. The eighth edition this year attracted more than 800 entries across 300 categories.

“We congratulate His Excellency Dr. Al-Kuwaiti for the recognition as the exclusive award winner in the Global Leadership Award category of the 2023 Cybersecurity Excellence Awards,” said Holger Schulze, CEO of Cybersecurity Insiders and founder of the 600,000-member Information Security Community on LinkedIn, which organises the annual Cybersecurity Excellence Awards.

“This award is a testament to Dr. Al-Kuwaiti’s dedicated leadership and outstanding contributions to advancing global cybersecurity and digital transformation.”

An ardent advocate of embracing digital transformation to increase efficiency in the UAE government for the betterment of its people, Dr. Al-Kuwaiti was also responsible for launching several initiatives to rapidly secure investments made in emerging technologies from the next new wave of Industry 4.0.

His Excellency subscribes to a notion of ‘Cyber Heaven’ through which citizens of the UAE become more digital and cyber literate, and are able to keenly discern cyber threats around them today.

With more than 20 years’ experience, Dr. Al-Kuwaiti holds a Doctorate in Computer Engineering and Network Security from George Washington University in the US and a Master’s degree in Telecommunications and Computer Networks. He holds a MA degree in International and Civil Security, is a recipient of numerous awards, and an honorable member of the Society of Engineers, IEEE Society, Golden Key National Honor Society and Computer Society. His research interests are detecting, monitoring and responding to cyber warfare, network forensics, corporate governance & processes, and national cyber policy.

GISEC Global, the Middle East’s largest and most impactful cybersecurity event, has grown in size by 50 percent year-on-year, and ran from March 14-16 at the Dubai World Trade Centre (DWTC), hosting a record 500 exhibiting brands from 53 countries, 300 leading InfoSec and cybersecurity speakers, and 1,000 of the world’s top ethical hackers, to dismantle and demystify the world’s greatest digital threats.

The annual three-day super-connector is hosted by the UAE Cybersecurity Council and organised by DWTC, and takes place amid a rapidly expanding Middle East cybersecurity market that, according to analysts Frost & Sullivan, will grow in value from US$7.5 billion in 2022 to US$31 billion by 2030, clocking 20 percent annual growth.