Gulf nations must unite to fight cyber threats, says former FBI chief

Don Codling, who was previously the FBI's cyber security unity chief, said Gulf countries were cooperating to counter the threat to everyday services from cyber criminals

Don Codling, former Cyber Security Unit Chief, FBI, USA, talks to one of the speakers. Ravindranath K / The National

ABU DHABI // Cooperation is key when it comes to tackling the constantly adapting threat from cyber criminals.

That was the advice given by the former FBI cyber security unit chief, Don Codling, at a conference in Abu Dhabi.

“The message is that this region has recognised the threats of cyber attacks, not just from the industry side but for the quality of life side,” said Mr Codling at the Cyber Security for Energy and Utilities Summit.

He said that a unified system of defence was essential for the security of power generation, water systems, air traffic control and other services that we took for granted.

“It is much to the credit of the UAE authorities and the whole GCC that it has gotten on board and gotten serious about this. It is always better to address this before there is a problem,” he said.

“Industry has to work with government, and the private sector must work with the public sector. That is perfect,” he said.

“You have to have a national approach and top-down leadership from government and industry.

“The threats will always adapt much more rapidly than the defender. People tend to forget that most of your adversaries don’t have a budget, or have to report to a boss or authority. They just want to cause you financial loss or embarrassment.

“The bad guys will continue to adapt and only by education and information sharing will it be tackled.”

The conference also heard how local authorities had already put measures in place to deter and respond to cyber attacks.

“Abu Dhabi Police is part of several government entities that work collaboratively to address emergency services and cyber security,” said Lt Col Faisal Mohammed Al Shimmari, chief information security officer at Abu Dhabi GHQ.

“When it comes to Abu Dhabi Police our cyber security controls are in place to ensure privacy, confidentiality, integrity and availability of our services.

“Cyber security can threaten us on several levels. It can target individuals, it can target corporations and organisations and even countries. It is a transcontinental crime by nature. The victim could be in one continent and the criminal in another.”

He said the challenge was using technology to track offenders and prove their culpability.

“Law enforcement worldwide is evolving to address the dynamic nature of this kind of crime. We are all responsible for safety and security and individuals by increasing their awareness and getting more responsible of how they behave and communicate online is definitely a key enabler to ensure their safety and security.”

It was highlighted that the consequences of a cyber attack were not always confined to the digital realm.

Cyber criminals were finding increasingly advanced means of infiltrating the computer systems that affected our everyday lives.

“Cyber attack made it to the top of the list in the national risk register so we do understand the threat that it could bring to our frontier,” Dr Jamal Mohammed Al Hosani, director of information and communications technology at the National Emergency Crisis and Disaster Management Authority.

“We have set up plans in terms of preparation and prevention to halt major attacks on the UAE’s organisations and networks. We hope we get better and better at countering cyber attacks,” he said.

“We have vital industries that provide us with things for our daily lives, like oil and gas, electricity and water, and if these systems are compromised we could be facing a disaster as we will not have the necessities.

“Even if this happened for one day it would cause havoc. We have to keep our systems running and we need a programme to safeguard these assets.”