UAE cyber chief says a single virus could disrupt an airport, power or water network

A single malicious programme could potentially disrupt an airport, bring parts of an essential service to a standstill or cripple critical digital infrastructure, the UAE's top cybersecurity official has warned as cyberwarfare emerges as a growing threat.

Dr Mohamed Al Kuwaiti, Head of Cybersecurity for the UAE Government, said cyber threats were evolving from conventional cybercrime and cyberterrorism towards attacks aimed at disrupting or destroying the digital infrastructure that keeps essential services running.

“The war in cyber, digital currencies and the virtual world is much bigger than what it was today,” he told Khaleej Times, describing cybersecurity as an increasingly important front in modern conflicts.

He said the UAE was currently facing an average of around 600,000 cyberattacks a day, with the number reaching about 800,000 a day at the peak of the war. “It’s still a lot; why? Because there’s a war. And as long as you have a war, there are a lot of things that you try to enter and extract data and information from.”

Al Kuwaiti said the threats facing the UAE could broadly be divided into three areas: cybercrime, cyberterrorism and cyberwarfare. Cybercrime includes attacks involving theft, fraud, espionage and the spread of rumours and other malicious activity, while cyberterrorism involves the use of technology and online platforms to spread extremist ideas.

Al Kuwaiti said the second major threat, which he described as cyberterrorism, involves using social media, online games and other digital platforms to spread false ideas, undermine social cohesion and encourage radicalisation.

“Cyberterrorism is the use of technology today, social media networks, electronic games and other means available to all parts of society to spread the false idea and strike at the loyalty of the state.” He said the threat had not disappeared, despite changes in the way extremist groups operate online. “It’s still there. It’s intended to destroy, hit and spread any of the ideas of the youth.”

Al Kuwaiti said the threat had also evolved towards what he described as the “lone wolf” model, in which an individual can be radicalised and act alone rather than as part of a larger group.

“There will be one person, and his mind will be brainwashed. He will tell you he is the one who will make this change, even if it starts with one person.” He said the idea was to convince an individual that they could become the person who makes the change, rather than relying on a large group to carry out an attack.

The cybersecurity chief also warned about the influence of violent content on children, particularly through online games. “All children’s games are killing games,” he said. “So how do you tell these children that these are games? This is a virtual world, and this is a real world.”

He said the challenge was to ensure young people understood the difference between the virtual world and real-world behaviour while remaining grounded in the values and responsibilities of society.

Al Kuwaiti said this was why cybersecurity awareness could not be left to government agencies or specialists alone. “Society is the first line of defence,” he said, stressing the importance of building awareness among children, parents and communities.

But cyberwarfare represents a more direct threat to the functioning of a country, as attackers increasingly seek to target the systems behind critical infrastructure.

“What we have seen in recent times is an attempt to strike, wipe out and destroy the digital infrastructure.”

He pointed to sectors including electricity, water, aviation and energy, which increasingly depend on interconnected digital systems.