Local businesses in the UAE anticipate a surge in cyberattacks during the Ramadan period, an industry report said.
The spike in malicious activity around Ramadan is linked to the rise in online shopping across the UAE during this holy period, the report by Qrator Labs said.
Ramadan sees increased DDoS activity
Citing findings of its recent research, it said DDoS attacks intensify during the holy month because of increased digital transactions.
A DDoS attack is a cybercrime that attempts to overwhelm a website or network with traffic to make it inaccessible.
Qrator Labs said it detected over 200 powerful attacks exceeding 1 Gbps in the first quarter of 2024 when Ramadan takes place.
This period also saw the longest attack of the year – it lasted for 464 hours (almost three weeks) and targeted the e-commerce segment, peaking at 280 Gbps, the company said.
The most targeted sector was e-commerce, accounting for 25.3 per cent of all attacks, with online retail being the most vulnerable microsegment, receiving 20 per cent of all attacks, the report said.
Andrey Leskin, CTO at Qrator Labs, said businesses need to adopt comprehensive cybersecurity strategies, including advanced DDoS protection to protect themselves from cyberattacks.
Retail customers can enhance their security by regularly updating their passwords, using unique passwords for each shopping platform, enabling two-factor authentication, and ensuring safe transactions, he added.
“Cybercriminals consistently exploit high-traffic seasons, and Ramadan 2025 is expected to be another peak period for DDoS attacks,” Leskin said.
“Businesses must anticipate and mitigate these risks by proactively implementing robust protection,” he added.
According to 2024 research by ArabAd, e-commerce transactions in the UAE expanded by 23 per cent during the Ramadan season last year, while Gross Merchandise Value (GMV) grew by 13 per cent, compared to the previous year.
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