expert
OPINION
Sovereignty in cybersecurity is not only about borders or compliance.
about fear, but about clarity and long-term thinking. It is part of strategic leadership. The leaders who make the biggest impact will be the ones who see cybersecurity as cultural, not just technical. They will prioritise transparency, invest in ethical and explainable technology, and build teams that carry these values forward.
In Europe, debates around chat control and encrypted communication are heating up. From your perspective, how should the Middle East balance national security with privacy and secure communication for businesses and individuals?
The current debate in Europe around scanning encrypted messages highlights how complex the relationship between privacy and national security has become. The goal of protecting people, especially children, is critical. But the proposed methods risk undermining the trust people place in digital tools.
In the Middle East, I recognise and respect the emphasis on security and societal stability. At the same time, secure communication is vital for business confidence and long-term economic growth. Weakening encryption can open doors not only for authorities, but also for cybercriminals. The region has a unique opportunity to create a model that prioritises protection without sacrificing trust. By focusing on targeted investigations, modern digital forensics and building trusted national infrastructure, it can set an example for others to follow.
How can emerging technologies and new models of Artificial Intelligence reshape the way we think about resilience and sovereignty in cybersecurity?
Artificial Intelligence is already transforming how we detect and respond to threats, but the more important shift is about ownership. Who controls the infrastructure, the models and the data? Centralised AI, controlled by a few major companies, creates dependence and limits transparency. It becomes harder to know what drives decisions, how data is used and where vulnerabilities might exist.
That is why decentralised models like Bittensor are so promising. They distribute intelligence across a network, reduce single points of failure and encourage collaboration. For the Middle East, this presents a powerful opportunity to develop systems that reflect local values, languages and priorities.
Sovereignty in cybersecurity is not only about borders or compliance. It is about taking ownership of your digital future, building trusted systems and making sure that critical decisions are made with transparency and intention.
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