UAE announces drone cybersecurity guidelines

The first national guidelines for drones in the UAE have been developed, the UAE Cybersecurity Council (CSC) announced on Saturday.

The Council worked in collaboration with Reach Digital, a subsidiary of Reach Group which specialises in digital transformation and cybersecurity innovation, and Shieldworkz, a cybersecurity firm specialised in OT/IoT and drone protection technologies.

The guidelines are part of the UAE’s future-oriented vision, which aims to strengthen the nation's resilience against cyber threats, support secure digital transformation, and position the UAE as a global hub for innovation and technology.

Dr. Mohamed Al Kuwaiti, Head of the UAE Cybersecurity, said, "These guidelines represent a vital milestone in enhancing the nation’s UAV ecosystem, ensuring that drone operations across government, commercial, and industrial sectors are resilient, secure, and aligned with global best practices.

"With increasing UAV deployment across sectors from agriculture, environmental monitoring to logistics cybersecurity risks must be proactively addressed to protect airspace, infrastructure, and data integrity."

Malik Melhem, CEO of Reach Group, stated, "This collaboration reflects our unwavering commitment to advancing the UAE’s digital and cybersecurity infrastructure. We are proud to contribute to national readiness by aligning with CSC and delivering practical, scalable cybersecurity solutions for the drone sector."