Mastercard has joined the Dubai Financial Services Authority (DFSA) Threat Intelligence Platform (TIP), furthering Mastercard’s alliance with Dubai International Financial Centre (DIFC). The collaboration cements Mastercard’s commitment to construct intelligence-led, public-private partnerships and boost cyber resilience across the Middle East, Africa and South Asia region. The DFSA TIP facilitates the development of a community of information sharing for regulated and non-regulated companies operating in or from the DIFC.
In a continuation of Mastercard’s partnership with DIFC under Mastercard’s Cyber Forward program, this step will help boost cyber resilience cross the financial industry and payments ecosystem. The Cyber Forward program launched in January 2021 combines Mastercard’s cutting-edge capabilities in cybersecurity with those of leading public sector organizations to create secure digital ecosystems at a national, local and city level.
This collaboration between the DFSA, DIFC and Mastercard sets out to foster greater and more advanced cybersecurity capabilities, including the provision of time-sensitive threat signatures and data patterns that provide for indicators of attempted or actual compromise of information or physical assets. These will culminate in the development of a comprehensive ‘threat library’ that will enable the DIFC and its institutions to recognize and respond to risk in real-time.
“As the world grows increasingly connected through the power of digital transformation, it is more vital than ever for industry leaders to act as the first line of defense to create a secure financial ecosystem. Building on our strategic partnership with DIFC, we are delighted to join forces with the DFSA to foster intelligence threat sharing across the entire DIFC community. Together, we are ensuring the region’s most advanced financial hub is also its most secure,” said Khalid Elgibali, Division President – MENA, Mastercard.
Mastercard’s commitment to join the DFSA’s Threat Intelligence platform deepens our relationship with them to enhance cybersecurity efforts globally. As the leading financial centre in the Middle East, Africa and South Asia, DIFC continues to set the standards that address both the current and anticipated issues facing the industry locally, regionally and internationally,” said Arif Amiri, CEO of DIFC Authority.
“Cyber resilience begins with maintaining awareness of the increasingly sophisticated techniques of cybercriminals and the persistence of their campaigns. Information is key to maintaining awareness and we welcome Mastercard’s participation on TIP and its commitment to contribute information in support of the cyber resilience of the TIP, DIFC and regional community,” said Waleed Saeed Al Awadhi, Chief Operating Officer, DFSA.
Research shows that trust in security is much needed as the digital economy expands. The Mastercard Recovery Insights in 2021 found that 20-30% of the Covid-related shift to digital commerce globally is permanent, with an additional $900 billion being spent in retail globally in 2020, further demonstrating the need for a robust digital infrastructure capable of combatting increasingly sophisticated types of cybercrime. Mastercard revealed that it helped save stakeholders $3 billion worth of fraud through its AI-enabled cyber systems in the last two years alone.
