REMIT researcher James Shires (Virtual Routes) has a new published op-ed on the Binding Hook, talking about the impact the war in Gaza has had on the public face of the cooperation between Israel and United Arab Emirates – particularly as it regards ransomware.
The author, James Shires, says of the op-ed: “This op-ed is based on research, co-authored by Bassant Hassib and me, which developed out of our shared interest in the role digital technologies play in state recognition. We had followed the development of the Abraham Accords closely and were struck by the prominence of cybersecurity in the publicity surrounding it, as well as contemporaneous projects in subsea cables and cloud computing. Since then, I have been both a participant and analyst of international initiatives to counter ransomware, and thought the Crystal Ball platform addressed in the op-ed would be an excellent case study of the different roles for digital technologies we identify in our research. This topic is important not only because the impact of the Gaza war on regional relations is profound and will reverberate for many years to come, but also because the mechanisms and trends we identify here are applicable to other regional contexts too.”
Abstract
In mid-February, the head of the UAE Cyber Security Council implausibly claimed that all ransomware attempts in the state in 2024 were ‘successfully thwarted’ with the help of private sector partners – despite a reported 32% increase in such incidents that year. Perhaps unsurprisingly, he made this claim at a conference sponsored by said partners to publicise their latest threat intelligence, including on a malicious actor jarringly dubbed ‘Crafty Camel’.
However, the national origin of some of those private sector partners was conspicuously absent from this announcement. As well as the usual roll-call of cybersecurity companies from the US, UK, and Europe, the UAE cybersecurity sector features a range of Israeli companies offering both offensive and defensive products and services.
Israel-UAE cybersecurity cooperation has been fundamentally reshaped by Israel’s war in Gaza, one of many far wider changes in regional geopolitics. Due to the reputational risks of public cooperation, their cybersecurity relationship has returned to the quiet, back-room deals favoured by both countries before their landmark normalisation five years ago.
Full Citation
Shires, J. “Gaza War Pushes Israel-UAE Ransomware Cooperation Back Behind Closed Doors”, Binding Hook, March, 2025,
https://bindinghook.com/articles-binding-edge/gaza-war-pushes-israel-uae-ransomware-cooperation-back-behind-closed-doors/