Dubai: According to a top official, Expo 2020 Dubai has the world’s most advanced cyber security policies in place to secure the massive event from cyberattacks.
The goal, according to Eman Al Awadhi, Vice-President, Cyber Security and Resilience at Expo 2020 Dubai, is to protect the sprawling site’s infrastructure and technologies from unforeseen cyberattacks.
Al Awadhi stated that the confluence of information technology and operational technologies is being controlled, as well as guaranteeing cyber-threat preparation. As a result, the goal is to defend Expo’s infrastructure and operations across the site, including everything from ticket sales and AI-driven robotics to virtual reality, gigantic screens, and more.
Expo 2020 Dubai, she said, is securing the world’s most diverse and dynamic technology ecosystem, capable of supporting 200+ participants, including 191 countries, each with their own pavilion, as well as businesses, multilateral organizations, academic institutions, and millions of visitors from around the world. “As vice-president of Cyber Security, I am responsible for defining and implementing the most advanced cyber-security strategy ever seen at a world expo,” Al Awadhi said.
“Arguably, the biggest challenge of protecting and operating our 4.38sqkm smart site — which includes 130-plus buildings that are interconnected via smart building management system — is done through new, innovative technologies that the world hasn’t seen before, while simultaneously managing a very complex digital infrastructure,” said the official.
As a result of the Covid-19 outbreak, the number of cyberattacks in the Middle East has increased dramatically, with individuals and businesses falling prey to hackers and scammers. According to the UAE’s head of government cyber security, cyberattacks increased by 250 percent last year.
Cyber criminals are likely to be on the watch as Dubai prepares to launch the world’s greatest show in just three months, which is estimated to attract 25 million people during the six-month period between October 1, 2021 and March 31, 2022.
However, Expo 2020 Dubai is collaborating with its technology partners Siemens, Accenture, Cisco, Etisalat, MasterCard, and SAP, as well as its official cyber security provider, Digital14, “to deliver a safe, secure, connected site with smart infrastructure that will continue to offer benefits beyond the event,” said Al Awadhi.
Expo 2020 Dubai’s 130-plus structures are connected to smart building technology from Siemens, the Expo’s main infrastructure digitisation partner.
MindSphere, a cloud-based Internet of Things operating system, controls it, and it is part of one of the world’s largest installations of Siemens’ smart-building technologies.
Air conditioning, air quality monitoring, energy use, fire alarms, lifts, and lighting will all be “smart,” with data acquired through MindSphere assisting in improving energy efficiency and maximizing safety, security, and comfort.
“We’ve also spent the last three years planning with Digital 14, our cyber security provider, on how to provide a seamless experience to all our visitors, whether they visit Expo physically or digitally,” said Al Awadhi. She also said that this will serve as a lasting, measurable long-term legacy that will set a benchmark for future cities, not only for the country or region, but for the world.
Even when the Expo 2020 Dubai site is transformed into District 2020, its digital infrastructure will provide the capabilities for future communities to achieve the resilience they require. All of the technology infrastructure constructed for Expo 2020 Dubai will be preserved as part of the legacy.
District 2020 will have cutting-edge enabling technologies such as augmented reality, big data, the Internet of Things, ultra-high-speed internet, and a 5G mobile network. To build a smart and sustainable community, it will integrate offices, residential, social, cultural, and collaborative areas. Also, it will bring together Fortune 500 enterprises, SMEs, entrepreneurs, academia, R&D, accelerators, venture capital and incubators, providing them with a platform to collaborate and thrive.
Extending on the digital legacies that Expo 2020 Dubai will leave, Siemens has committed to establishing a worldwide logistics headquarters as a significant feature of the site’s legacy, according to Al Awadhi. Terminus, a leader in artificial intelligence (AI) and the Internet of Things (IoT), will open its first headquarters and research & development center outside of China. The Flow Pavilion at DP World will be transformed into a permanent faculty dedicated to logistical excellence.
Furthermore, sustainability is included into all areas of the event in order to have a lasting influence that extends beyond the Expo 2020 Dubai site and beyond the six-month period. This provides a blueprint for constructing a sustainable smart city that could be replicated anywhere in the world.
