Speakers

H.E. Dr. Mohamed Al Kuwaiti, Head of Cybersecurity, United Arab Emirates Government

Dr. Al Kuwaiti was appointed by the Cabinet as the Head of Cyber Security for the UAE Government since 2020. As the Head of Cyber Security, his mandate includes responsibilities as the Chairman of the UAE Cyber Security Council as well as Managing Director of the National Data Centre under the Supreme Council for National Security. As the Head of Cyber Security for... the UAE Government by investiture, Dr. Al Kuwaiti has legal authority over all aspects pertaining to securing the cyberspace for the entire Nation. In his current role, Dr. Al Kuwaiti is tasked with the responsibility of charting the cyber security strategy for the Nation that not only equips the UAE to enter the digital era with capabilities to deal with the new threat landscape exacerbated by the pandemic, but also ensures UAE’s leadership in cyber security globally; towards establishing the UAE as the world’s leading trusted digital hub and supporting the Nation’s digital transformation agenda and the digital future of all residents who made UAE their home. Towards that end, he leads the Council to outline an implementation plan to protect the UAE cyberspace through emerging technologies such as Cloud, Big Data and AI in a whole-of-government approach coordinating and orchestrating efforts between Emirates and government entities via a unified platform built and managed by the Council. Under Dr. Al Kuwaiti’s leadership, the UAE has advanced 42 positions in the ITU Global Cybersecurity Index, rising to the 5th place globally from 47th in the previous assessment. Dr. Al Kuwaiti has also led UAE to many firsts, including Guinness World Records for having the most users in a cyber capture the flag (CTF) competition, the largest bug bounty competition and the largest cyber drill; all initiatives that aim at capacity building in cyber security and improving the technical competencies of cyber security professionals and enthusiasts. More importantly, he has been instrumental in advocating for realizing the value of cyber security by demonstrating cyber security as a critical business enabler. Since 2021, Dr. Al Kuwaiti plays the role of an ambassador for collaboration between the government and cyber agencies, helping to bridge the discussion between the two major stakeholders in the digital economy. Under his chaperone, key public-private partnerships were established between the UAE Cyber Security Council and leading local and international cyber security organizations with the goal of making a positive contribution to the UAE cyber agenda and be a major force that will benefit the global cyber security industry. Additionally, bilateral agreements established with countries both within the region and across the world contributed towards mutual information sharing, capacity development and legal assistance aid treaties, all key outcomes as a result of the National Cyber Security Strategy that he has put in place to realize the vision of the UAE for the next 50 years. Underscoring the UAE’s leadership in cyber security on a global stage under Dr. Kuwaiti’s tutelage, UAE plays a pivotal role in the Arab Regional Cybersecurity Centre with UAE being elected as the Vice Chair of the Organization of Islamic Cooperation (OIC) Computer Emergency Response Team to respond to cyber emergencies during the 10th Regional Cybersecurity Week for Arab Countries and OIC Member States in 2022. UAE also co-chairs the Information Sharing Committee in the White House Counter Ransomware Initiative, a coalition of 37 international partners. His contributions to accelerate the cyber security maturity of the Nation and fostering a vibrant cyber security ecosystem in the UAE have been recognized in multiple forums, including the (ISC)² Government Professional Award for EMEA. Dr. Al Kuwaiti also sits on the Boards of the UAE Council for Digital Wellbeing, Telecommunications and Digital Government Regulatory Authority (TDRA), Federal Geographic Information Center and is on the Advisory Committees of the College of Information Technology under United Arab Emirates University (UAEU) and Emirates ICT Innovation Center (EBTIC) under Khalifa University. Additionally, he is an Adjunct Professor under the Homeland Security Program at Rabdan Academy and a visiting lecturer on Cyber Security at universities such as Khalifa University and National Defense College in Abu Dhabi. Prior to his current appointments, Dr. Al Kuwaiti was with the National Electronic Security Authority in various appointments and capacity since 2013 where he was most recently the Executive Director of Government Operations managing National and International government relations. He had served as the Chief Technical Analyst at the Ministry of Interior where he had held other positions, such as Operations Director and CTO of the Counter Terrorism Center. Dr. Al Kuwaiti started his 20 year-long career as a Defense, Air, and Naval Military Attaché with the Embassy of The United Arab Emirates based in Washington, D.C. Dr. Al Kuwaiti has published numerous papers and keynoted at many conferences such as IEEE, RSA, Cyber Warfare Europe, Tele Strategies, ISS World MEA, IDEX, International Anti-Cyber Crimes Conference and Future War Summit. He is a highly sought after speaker internationally and has provided the main keynote address for more than 50 international, regional, and national cybersecurity events such as GITEX, GISEC and the World Government Summit, and has presented the UAE Cyber Security Framework at INTERPOL Global Cyberspace and Cybercrime Complex located in Singapore. Dr. Al Kuwaiti holds a Doctorate in Computer Engineering and Network Security from George Washington University in the U.S. and a master’s degree in Telecommunications and Computer Networks. He also holds a M.A. degree in International and Civil Security. Dr. Al Kuwaiti is 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. more

Abdulla Al Dhaheri, Cybersecurity Specialist, UAE Government

Abdulla Al Dhaheri is a cybersecurity specialist and red team penetration tester. Holding certifications in his fields include OSCP (offensive security certified professional), CEH (certified ethical hacker), eJPT, CBD (certified blockchain developer), Author of “Cybersecurity Fundamentals in Web 3”. The first person to have a revolutionary idea of blockchain... technology in 2013 to have the tokenization of IDs, Passports, Birth certificates, etc. All withheld in the blockchain. Patent holder.  more

Rajesh Yadla, Head of Information Security, Al Hilal Bank

Rajesh has almost 15 years of experience in information security and technology risk management. He heads the information security function at Al Hilal bank and is responsible for protecting information assets in on-premises and cloud from external and internal threats. Before joining Al Hilal, he worked in Group42 to establish the information security function... in the organisation. Prior to this, he worked as Head of International Information Security at First Abu Dhabi Bank and was responsible for managing information security for FAB’s 12 international branches. He holds a dual EMBA degree from the University of California Los Angeles & the National University of Singapore, and carries several industry-recognised certifications on cyber and information security like CISSP, CISA, ISO27001(LA) and CDPSE. Outside work, he enjoys travel, playing cricket and chess. "Cyber Security is like the brakes in the car. It slows you down, but it also makes it possible for you to go lot faster" – Dr. Gary Hinson more

Jeevan Badigari, Director of Information Security and Governance, DAMAC Properties

Jeevan is currently working as Director of Information Security and Governance at DAMAC Properties Dubai. Having over 16 years of experience in Information Security, Governance, Project Management, Risk Management, and Technology Management combined. Jeevan brings the expertise of delivering global security and compliance standards such as ISO27001 and PCI-DSS and... NESA standards to organizations. Jeevan holds an MBA from the University of Phoenix, USA with a concentration in Technology Management and has number of International Certifications including CISSP from ISC2 in good standing. more

Hussein Hassan Shafik, CISO, Abu Dhabi Islamic Bank

Hussein is an Information and Cybersecurity professional with more than 25 years of experience. He has recently been appointed Group Chief Information Security and Privacy Officer at Abu Dhabi Islamic Bank and was formerly at Standard Chartered Bank as the Global Head of Special Engagements, Fintech & Partnerships and Chief Information Security Risk Officer for... Africa, Middle East. He has managed information security in multiple financial organisations where he has assisted to develop information security improvement programs around security standards such as PCI-DSS, ISO27001, NIST, NESA IA and COBIT. Hussein is a member of many financial industry collaboration groups, formal banking committees and associations around the region that are focused on cyber security intelligence, regulatory development and cybersecurity maturity. He is a passionate cybercrime fighter who believes in fighting cybercrime through transparency and collaboration within the banking industry and is one of the founding members of the UAE Cyber Intelligence sharing platform TASHARUK. Hussein graduated from Solvay Brussels School in Belgium. more

Zaheer Shaikh, Chief Information Security Officer, Al Maryah Community Bank LLC

Zaheer Shaikh is the Chief Information Security Officer (CISO) of Al Maryah Community Bank LLC, with 22 years of experience as an Information Technology (IT) professional with strong expertise in IT management, Information, Cyber Security, and IT enterprise architecture. Being a founding team member of the bank Mr. Shaikh has been demonstrating expertise in establishing... and implementing large information security and cybersecurity programs. Has designed and implemented an automated tool-based vulnerability management framework that continuously monitors and detects Cyber threats and vulnerabilities. He has also performed evaluations and selection of IT security tools and successfully implemented IT security systems to protect the availability, integrity, and confidentiality of critical business information and assets. Mr. Shaikh is a multi-certified C-suite IT security and operations leader and is an alumnus of the Great Lakes Institute of Management and Harvard University. In past, he has worked with multinational banks like Barclays, Deutsche Bank, and Mashreq and has successfully delivered critical digital transformation and security programs. more

Vikalp Shrivastava, Global CISO, Kerzner International

Vikalp Shrivastava carries over 22 years of experience into different technology leadership roles and currently holds the Global CISO role for Kerzner International, based in Dubai, UAE. Vikalp worked for multibillion dollar casino resort organisations... in Macau, such as Wynn Resorts and Melco Entertainment Ltd, as Group Head of information security, where he lead large teams of security professionals, He drove the initiative of ISO27001 in this organization and turned the organization the first ever ISO27001 certified casino resort organization in the world in 2009, it was a role of CISO and helped him to understand many different areas of information security challenges from internal and external risk factors. Vikalp also led large cyber-attack protection companies and vendors as head for APAC in his past and worked with several different industries such as news media, banks, telecoms, oil & gas, technology and critical infrastructure companies etc. Vikalp is a well-known name in the information and cybersecurity world as leading thought leader. more

Hussain AlKhalsan, Chief Information Security Officer, ZAND

Hussain Al Khalsan joined Zand as Chief Information Security Officer (CISO) in June 2019. In his role, he oversees and manages the Cyber Security Programme of Zand. He is a seasoned professional with 15 years of experience in IT Security, Information Security and Cyber Security purely in the banking and financial services industry.

Aus Alzubaidi, Director of IT, Cybersecurity & Management, MBC Group

Aus Alzubaidi is a seasoned IT leader with over 19 years of experience in the media and entertainment, video production, information technology, and cybersecurity industries across the Middle East, North Africa, Europe, and North America. He has a proven track record of leading over 300 successful projects worth more than USD 200 million, making him widely recognized... as an expert in digital and cloud transformation, cyber security and utilizing cutting-edge technology to drive business growth. Currently, Aus heads a team of 80 architects and managers, along with offshore teams. He has a deep understanding of change management, business continuity, and the challenges of creating a modern secure and hybrid work environment in the public cloud era. Throughout his career, he has demonstrated an innovative mindset, driven by the pursuit of continuous improvement, and a mastery of complex organizational systems, cultures, and processes. Aus has a proven record of delivering operational excellence and cost-saving solutions through agility, creative thinking, and tactical optimization. His expertise in cloud technologies, artificial intelligence, machine learning, and real-time data-driven decision-making has contributed significantly to revenue growth for his organizations. In addition to his impressive portfolio, Aus has received numerous awards for his outstanding contributions to the industry. He was named a CXO50 2023 Visionary and exceptional CIO, and won 2023’s Cyber Strategists Award. He was also a winner of IDC’s Future of Operations in Cybersecurity 2022, and was a CIO50 2021 & 2020 awardee. He is an active member of CIOMajlis, EliteCISOs, Global CISO Forum & CIO Association Klub. He serves as an advisory board member of the American University of Sharjah, as well as a member of Palo Alto Networks Executive Advisory Council. more

Steve Kinghan, Head of Cyber Operations, Hiscox

Steve Kinghan is the Head of Cyber Operations within Hiscox Insurance’s information security team. Steve has been at Hiscox for two years, with his life prior being within military intelligence and offensive cyber operation