Expo 2020 is scheduled to be a World Expo to be hosted by Dubai in the United Arab Emirates, originally scheduled for 20 October 2020 – 10 April 2021. However, due to the COVID-19 pandemic in the United Arab Emirates, the new dates are 1 October 2021 – 31 March 2022.
Expo 2020 Dubai has the world’s most advanced cyber security strategies in place to protect the mega event from cyberattacks, a top official has said.
Eman Al Awadhi, Vice-President, Cyber Security and Resilience at Expo 2020 Dubai, said the objective is to protect the sprawling site with all its infrastructure and technologies from unforeseen cyberattacks.
The Covid-19 pandemic has seen a skyrocketing of cyberattacks in the Middle East with individuals and companies falling prey to hackers and fraudsters. Last year, the UAE saw a 250 per cent rise in cyberattacks, according to the UAE head of Government Cyber Security.
As Dubai is preparing to roll out the world’s greatest show in just three months, which is expected to attract 25 million visitors during the six-month period between October 1, 2021 and March 31, 2022, it is expected that cyber criminals will be on the prowl.
But Expo 2020 Dubai is working with its technology partners Siemens, Accenture, Cisco, Etisalat, MasterCard and SAP, and also its official cyber security provider, Digital14, “to deliver a safe, secure, connected site with smart infrastructure that will c`ontinue to offer benefits beyond the event”, said Al Awadhi.
