The number of cyber-attacks against websites in the United Arab Emirates (UAE) during the first four months of the current year reached 155, compared to 297 attacks during the same period of 2017, a decline of 48%.

The decrease from January to April reflects the significant success of the “National IT Emergency Response Team” of the Telecommunications Regulatory Authority, TRA, in deterring hacking attempts.

According to the TRA’s statistics, cyber-attacks during the first four months of the current year mainly targeted government and private sector websites.

Forty-five cyber-attacks involving fraud and phishing were recorded during that period, and a further 26 cyber-attacks aimed to leak information. The other attacks involved defamation and other purposes.

The authority’s statistics also showed that 85 attacks had a medium impact, 35 had a low impact, and 35 attacks had a major impact.

The TRA’s list of major cyber-attack risks includes the vulnerability of Internet Explorer, the smart installer of Cisco, hidden programs included in Microsoft updates, the Ziklon program, and the ransom program for the known e-cloud.

The TRA is working to raise awareness on how to counter malicious programs, by holding seminars and awareness programs for the entire community.

The TRA requires all authorities to follow its information security policies and back up their data on devices that are not connected to the internet. It also recently launched a campaign, titled, “They Do Not Deceive You,’ as part of its duty to raise community awareness.