Gisec Global 2022 to drive industry fightback against cyberthreats

Gisec, the cybersecurity exhibition and conference in the Middle East and Africa (MEA), is ready to re-energise public-private sector partnership as nations and firms explore new ways to address expanding global cybersecurity issues.

The event is organised in partnership with the UAE’s cyber entities, including the UAE Cybersecurity Council, Dubai Electronic Security Center, the Telecommunications & Digital Government Regulatory Authority and Dubai Police. The meeting point for the cybersecurity ecosystem will unite the industry’s brands and minds during three days of conference sessions, keynotes, partner seminars, interactive sessions, sponsor briefings and more, a statement said.

The event, which takes place from March 21-23 at the Dubai World Trade Centre (DWTC) – will host over 270 exhibiting brands and bring together more than 10,000 information security, technology professionals, business leaders and changemakers from over 70 countries.

Some of the brands exhibiting or sponsoring include Amazon Web Services (AWS), Cisco Security, Honeywell and Checkpoint, Microsoft, Huawei and Spire Solutions.

Gisec brings ethical hacking to the fore
The latest edition will focus on ethical hacking through several onsite features and activations throughout the three days. One of the highlight activations comes in the form of the largest live Bug Bounty hunt ever in the UAE.

What’s happening at #GISECGlobal 2022? Swipe ?? for a glimpse of it all! pic.twitter.com/QBBB3g74fm

— GISEC (@GISECGlobal) March 14, 2022

In support of the UAE Cyber Security Council National Bug Bounty Programme, 100 ethical hackers are flying in to take part in the programme, where they will be tasked to hack, identify, and fix certain software flaws in many different scenarios and mainframes – including electric cars, mobile phones and drones.

Changing landscape
With the MEA cybersecurity market expected to reach $2.89bn by 2026 at a CAGR of 7.92 per cent over the next four years, according to Mordor Intelligence, Gisec 2022 will see the cybersecurity providers showcase their latest products, solutions, innovations in the fields of cloud security, ransomware exploring collaborative business opportunities at the event.

“We live in a fast-growing intelligent era where connectivity is no longer a luxury but a necessity. In the UAE, technologies like cloud, AI, IoT, and 5G are powering our personal and professional lives, which can lead to an increase in cybersecurity risks. At Gisec Global 2022, Huawei is looking forward to engaging in industry dialogue around the cyber threats impacting the UAE and wider region while showcasing our latest solutions that are designed with security and privacy by design,” said Jiawei Liu, CEO of Huawei UAE.

“When you have comprehensive security, you have the freedom to grow your enterprise to match your vision. Comprehensive security is not only coverage, but also best-in-breed protection, built-in intelligence, and simplified management,” said Mohammed Arif, Director, Modern Work and Security, Microsoft UAE. “At Gisec 2022, we are showcasing new advances to help you strengthen visibility and control across multiple cloud providers, workloads, devices, and digital identities—all from a centralised management view. These offerings are designed to secure the foundations of hybrid work and digital transformation. Because there is no digital transformation without security transformation.”

Over 200 cyber titans and tech frontrunners
Gisec is set to host the biggest, most comprehensive cybersecurity platform in the region, with an expanded conference lineup that is set to feature more than 200 high-calibre speakers, including national cybersecurity leaders, tech pioneers, policymakers, researchers and intelligence heads. In addition, the UAE Cyber Security Council will host the Global Cybersecurity Congress – an annual gathering aimed at unifying efforts on local, national and global cross-sector levels and shaping national security and defence strategies to combat evolving threats; and a multitude of training workshops for industry professionals.

This year, split across five stages will feature the government stage hosted by the Dubai Electronic Security Center (DESC) and new content tracks focusing on healthcare, telecoms, critical infrastructure, and finance.

Some of the headline speakers across other stages include Dr Mohamed Al-Kuwaiti, head of Cyber Security, UAE Government; ‘notorious’ hacker Jayson E. Street; Stephen Kavanagh, executive director Police Services, Interpol; MK Palmore, former head of FBI San Francisco Cybersecurity Investigative Branch, US; Mesfer Almesfer, chief information security officer (CISO), Neom; Prof Isa Ali Ibrahim (Pantami), Federal Ministry of Communications and Digital Economy, Nigeria and Ambassador Amir Hayek, Israeli Ambassador to the UAE, Ministry of Foreign Affairs, Israel among others.

“As organisations grapple with the complexity of remote working and an increasingly sophisticated threat landscape, industry-wide collaboration becomes increasingly essential,” said Trixie LohMirmand, executive vice president, Events Management, DWTC. “Gisec will once again play a pivotal role in bringing business leaders, cybersecurity experts and world-class technology companies to connect, educate, collaborate and provide solutions to help tackle the biggest challenges in cybersecurity, driving thought leadership.”