DUBAI: All 10 international airports across UAE are “very safe” from cyberattacks, having ranked number one in terms of security worldwide, assured HE Saif Mohammed Al Suwaidi, General Civil Aviation Authority director general.
“We are there. We are in the right direction. There is a lot of things to do and we are not stopping,” Al Suwaidi told The Filipino Times in an interview following his keynote address, “Risk Foresight in the Aviation Industry” delivered at this year’s “RIMS Risk Forum Middle East.”
“We are in cooperation with a lot of electronics security agencies within to enhance our system. Also, we have established capability to oversee cybersecurity of the companies within the UAE aviation sector and we have engaged a lot of universities to do research and development in that regard,” he added.
Al Suwaidi said the UAE government “has seen this risk when we moved early to protect our system.”
He assured: “We are very safe. We ranked number 1 in the world last year for our security measures. We are the best.”
The UAE aviation sector, Al Suwaidi said in his speech, is a Dhs600-million industry contributing 16% to the country’s gross domestic product (GDP) and 26% to the emirate’s. The 10 international airports, he added, welcomes over 125 million passengers each year with Dubai being the busiest.
Some 27 airline companies are registered in the UAE totalling 870 aircraft. “We have one of the biggest network in the world covering east and west,” Al Suwaidi said.
“The volume and importance of the aviation sector and its big contribution to the GDP is a great encouragement for us to protect it from any risk that could arise.
“That is why assistance was established to monitor the risk and the best way to deal with it. It’s a very sensitive sector. The digital risk is real threat to aviation worldwide,” he added.
Al Suwaidi said UAE has been ranked first by the International Civil Aviation Association (ICAO), a United Nation’s specialized agency. It has also come up with the “Dubai Declaration” which is being adhered to by aviation sectors across the world as regards protection from cyberattacks.
The “RIMS Risk Forum Middle East” was organized by the General Directorate of Residency and Foreigners Affairs in Dubai (GDRFA Dubai) and held Dec. 11 and 12 at Hyatt Regency Dubai Creek Heights.
