Maria Harika is a MS in Cyber Security: Cyber Crime Investigation Candidate at the University of Alabama at Birmingham (UAB) and a Cyber Intelligence Analyst and Supervisor at the UAB Computer Forensics Research Lab. She previously served as a research assistant with MEI’s Cyber & Emerging Technology Program.
Ransomware in the UAE: Evolving threats and expanding responses
Immediately following the outbreak of COVID-19, cyber attacks swept across the Middle East, leaving public and private entities highly vulnerable and transforming the pandemic into both a physical and a digital threat. Despite worldwide physical isolation, many people were more digitally connected than ever before, which vastly expanded the attack surface for eager cyber threat actors. Ransomware attacks, in particular, hit the Middle East rapidly and in great numbers, especially the UAE.
