Remote work is just one aspect of a largescale migration towards digital platforms and cloud services during the pandemic, which has also pushed shopping, learning and banking online. The rapid pace of this transition has left cybersecurity professionals and networks in the UAE struggling to keep up, while hackers have been quick to come up with more crafty ploys to carry out cyber attacks.

The Middle East has been hit hard by this cybercrime wave, leading to a 250% surge in number of attacks by cybercrooks for the UAE in 2020. Months after authorities in the country warned netizens against a cyberpandemic, alarming findings of a survey are showing that 80% firms in the country reported cyberattacks against their employees who are active from home.

The results reinforce the notion that a massive adoption of cloud-first services as part of the mainstream work culture, has made companies lose sight of their networks. The figures didn't provide much hope for the coming year, since 70% are already wary of further breaches during the period.

But amidst the global rise in cybercrime, what's worrying is that merely 31% cybersecurity professionals have fortified their safety walls, more than a year after digitisation picked up pace. Over 80% of the organisations surveyed across UAE admitted that frequency of attacks has gone up, and almost 85% went on to say that hackers are using more sophisticated tricks.

Statistics did highlight increased awareness, with 78% firms identifying the importance of monitoring data and apps to flag risks of a possible cyberattack, for plugging holes beforehand. But against 99% companies hopping on to cloud services, only 37% have actual plans of strengthening their cyber-safety net.

Although cybercrime hasn't dampened the spirit of gulf countries when it comes to tech adoption, cybercrooks aren't holding back either, since Saudi Arabia repelled seven million attacks first three months of 2021 alone.

On the other hand, UAE is already on track to develop future ready cybersecurity, with a crypto library meant to enhance safety in the age of quantum computers.