Dubai Electricity and Water Authority (DEWA) has set up a round-the-clock cyber defence centre, becoming the first government organisation in Dubai to establish such a centre
The centre is in adherence with the vision of HH Sheikh Mohammed bin Rashid Al Maktoum, Vice-President and Prime Minister of the UAE and Ruler of Dubai, to make Dubai the smartest city in the world.
According to a DEWA statement, the cyber defence centre was established to predict potential threats and ensure preventive measures are in place to protect data by monitoring the organisations’s services and technical assets round the clock, handling incidents with care, and minimising risks, a statement said.
The authority stated that it adopts strategic plans to enhance the performance of services, at the highest standards of accountability. The cyber defence centre is a major step towards ensuring information technology security and reflects its ongoing commitment to adopt the best solutions and technologies, ensuring the safety, credibility, and accountability of services, it said.
“The cyber defence centre reflects DEWA’s efforts to enhance efficiency using our resources to make Dubai a safe place for citizens, residents, and visitors to live and work,” said DEWA CEO Saeed Mohammed Al Tayer.
“DEWA understands the importance of immediately dealing with potential security threats that can affect smart cities. DEWA established the 24/7 cyber defence centre to predict potential threats, and ensure that preventive measures are in place to protect our data, by monitoring our services and technical assets around the clock, handling incidents with care, and limiting the effects of potential threats, to become a pioneering government organisation across all levels,” added DEWA executive vice-president of innovation and the future Marwan Bin Haider.
DEWA received a certificate of commitment towards ISO standard ISO 27037:2012, which provides guidelines for dealing with digital evidence. The authority was granted the certificate, which also includes guidelines to assist with the identification, collection, and preservation of information following a series of evaluative audit and control operations.
