Etisalat to host eSecurity Forum in Abu Dhabi

PKI Digital Identity, Compliance, Risk Management and Software as a Service implications to be key focus areas

Dubai, December 12, 2006 : Etisalat today announced that it would be hosting a one day free event called "eSecurity Forum 2006" on December 19, 2006 at the Emirates Palace hotel in Abu Dhabi. Etisalat along with security experts from its global partners Qualys and Cybertrust will give CIOs, Directors and Managers of Security, and IT managers from large enterprises and SMEs (small & medium enterprises) insights into the latest trends and best practices for IT security, thereby enabling them to take a proactive approach to deal with the rapid developments and challenges in IT security. To register for the event, participants can visit www.etisalat.ae/esecurityforum

During the event, participants will get to understand Etisalat's comprehensive strategy aimed at assisting enterprises with their information security whether it is related to PKI policies and solutions, security outsourcing, compliance to global security standards or risk management.

In his presentation on PKI Digital Identities (Public Key Infrastructure), Rashed Al Alabbar, eSecurity Product Manager, Etisalat will talk about the growing relevance and importance of PKI to authenticate and identify assets and people in addition to securing communication and digitally signing documents. The importance of PKI has also grown with associated identity technologies increasingly underpinning applications such as workflow systems like Lotus Notes to Microsoft's new operating system, Windows Vista which contains a technology called CardSpace to help users manage identities.

Mark Laureys - VP of Business Development EMEA, Cybertrust will talk about the impact of compliance in the security environment today which is quickly changing the nature of application of IT security projects. Compliance is now becoming a legal obligation and this in turn affects the decision criteria for the implementation of security solutions. Mark's presentation will also demonstrate practical applications of IT security solutions to achieve compliance with regulatory and financial obligations.

Organisations and government institutions in the UAE are leading adopters of the latest security solutions," said Abdulla Hashim, VP Marketing, Enterprise Solutions, Etisalat. UAE is recognized as a significant hub in the Middle East for IT security services spending. A recent report from market analyst IDC places the Middle East region in second place worldwide based on e-security services spending in 2005 with an expenditure of $4.718 b in 2005. I am confident that this event will benefit security professionals in helping them understand the important trends shaping their working environment and enable them to learn from the experiences of their peers in other companies."

In his keynote address on Software as a Service, Leif Kremkow Principal Security Engineer and Certification Trainer, Qualys will show how the on-demand model impacts security and how it changes the way organizations manage their security posture. The presentation will also focus on the implications of recent consolidation within the security market.

The forum will also see Hossam Elkobrosy - Technical Services Manager, National Bank of Abu Dhabi speaking on the subject of Rethinking Risk Management.

-Ends-

Press release issued by Corporate Communications Department - Etisalat

For further media information, please contact:
Ahmed Bin Ali, Corporate Communications Manager
Tel: 02 6182173
Fax: 02 6334448
prd@etisalat.ae