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Middle East
Manual penetration testing (VAPT) and security consulting for organizations across Dubai, the wider UAE, Saudi Arabia, Qatar, and the region, scoped against the frameworks that actually apply, not a generic international template.
The Middle East cybersecurity market is growing ~14.5% a year.
Among the fastest-growing regional cybersecurity markets in the world, on track for roughly $46 billion by 2031.
Polaris Market ResearchCybersecurity regulation across the Middle East is genuinely regional, not one-size-fits-all , the UAE's Information Assurance Regulation, administered by the Telecommunications and Digital Government Regulatory Authority (TDRA), defines 15 management and technical control families. Saudi Arabia's National Cybersecurity Authority takes a different structure with its Essential Cybersecurity Controls (ECC). Dubai layers its own DESC standards on top for government and regulated entities operating in the emirate, and Qatar's National Cyber Security Agency (NCSA) runs a separate National Information Assurance framework, with its own accreditation requirement specifically for penetration testing (VAPT) providers. A generic penetration test report built for a US or generic-international audience doesn't map cleanly onto any of these.
What does map cleanly is testing scoped from the start with the actual applicable framework in mind, which controls it names, how it expects findings to be structured, and what evidence an auditor or regulator will actually be looking for.
This runs on the same manual, adversary-emulated methodology behind our core Penetration Testing service, applied with the region's specific regulatory landscape in mind.
The region-specific regulations and standards our engagements are most often scoped around.
Developed by the UAE's Telecommunications and Digital Government Regulatory Authority (TDRA), covering 15 management and technical control families for protecting information assets.
TDRA, Information Assurance RegulationThe National Cybersecurity Authority's minimum cybersecurity requirements for organizations in the Kingdom, covering governance, defense, resilience, and third-party controls.
NCA, Essential Cybersecurity ControlsThe Dubai Electronic Security Center's regulations, including the Information Security Regulation and Cloud Service Provider (CSP) Security Standard, for Dubai government and regulated entities.
DESC, RegulationsThe National Cyber Security Agency's (NCSA) baseline cybersecurity framework, administered under the National Information Security Compliance Framework (NISCF), which since 2024 has also required its own accreditation specifically for penetration testing service providers.
NCSA, Penetration Testing AccreditationThe international information security management standard, widely referenced across Middle East regulatory frameworks as a baseline or complementary certification.
ISO/IEC 27001IAR, ECC, DESC & NIA, evidenced
An internet-exposed database, a missing MFA control, and a data-residency gap, across the UAE's IAR, Saudi's NCA ECC, Dubai's DESC standard, and Qatar's NIA framework.
UAE Information Assurance Regulation, technical control families
$ nmap -sV portal.demo-corp.ae
3306/tcp open mysql ← database reachable directly from the internet
An illustrative walkthrough of how an engagement actually runs, not footage from a real client environment.
Yes, we scope engagements against the UAE's Information Assurance Regulation control families where relevant, for organizations operating under TDRA/SIA oversight.
Yes, we can structure testing and reporting to align with the ECC's control domains for organizations in the Kingdom, though formal ECC compliance certification is a separate process through your own audit pathway.
We work with clients across the UAE (including Dubai), Saudi Arabia, Qatar, and the wider Middle East, engagements are remote-capable, with on-site work scoped where genuinely needed.
We can scope testing aligned to DESC's standards, including the Information Security Regulation and CSP Security Standard, for entities operating under Dubai government oversight, tell us your specific regulatory context during scoping.
Yes, we can scope engagements around Qatar's NIA framework, administered by the National Cyber Security Agency (NCSA). Where a specific engagement requires NCSA's own penetration-testing accreditation under NISCF, we'll confirm exact fit with you during scoping rather than assume it applies.
Yes, VAPT (Vulnerability Assessment and Penetration Testing) is the term commonly used across the Gulf region for what we call penetration testing: manual, adversary-emulated testing that goes beyond an automated vulnerability scan to prove real, exploitable impact. Whichever term your organization uses, the methodology is the same.
Talk to us about scoping an engagement around your specific regulatory context, UAE IAR, Saudi ECC, DESC, or Qatar's NIA framework.
