UAE Sounds Alarm: AI-Powered Deepfakes, Fake Jobs and Home Camera Hacks Are the New Cyber Threat

Dubai, UAE – UAE state security and digital officials have issued a stark warning about the evolving threat of AI-driven cybercrime, revealing that fraudsters are increasingly using artificial intelligence to carry out deepfake scams, phishing attacks, fake job advertisements and hacks of internet-connected home surveillance cameras. The warning came during a press conference to launch Cyber Security Awareness Month, which runs throughout October, where authorities emphasised that digital threats now extend beyond data theft to misinformation, fake content creation and privacy violations.

Brigadier Saeed Mohammed Al Hajri, Director of the General Department of Criminal Investigation at Dubai Police, said the force has detected advanced uses of AI in fraud, phishing, data hacking and deepfaking, and has established a specialised department for emerging AI-related crimes. He highlighted the Electronic Evidence Lab’s capabilities to examine faces, voices and videos, and warned that fake job ads are a growing pattern, with victims sometimes unwittingly drawn into money laundering. Amer Sharaf, Executive Director of Cybersecurity at the Dubai Electronic Security Center, noted that AI accelerates attacks but also boosts monitoring, and pointed to the ‘Sarab’ deepfake detection programme and the ‘Razzam’ application. Colonel Dr. Engineer Ibrahim Al-Yamahi of the Ministry of Interior stressed that home cameras, if unsecured, can become tools for violating family privacy, and urged reporting of breaches. Brigadier Dr. Abdul Rahman Sharaf added that over 13 million people benefited from awareness efforts last year, with cybercrime lectures making up 60% of the total.

The officials’ warnings underscore the rapid evolution of cyber threats, where response times are now measured in minutes rather than days. The UAE’s cybersecurity strategy, launched in 2024, focuses on community safety, and authorities are calling for increased public vigilance and reporting. As AI tools become more sophisticated, the challenge for global law enforcement is to keep pace with criminals’ accelerating tactics, making awareness and prevention the first line of defence.