Tracking since 24 September 2026
Gulf Cyber Pulse
Cyber incidents in the six GCC countries: where they happen, who's blamed, which sectors are hit and how it's changing, from SentryFeed's news and ransomware gangs' own claims.
Thin for now, and it says so. SentryFeed only began collecting news recently, and few international stories name a Gulf country, so the news numbers are small. The ransomware claims cover a full year, but they're claims posted by the gangs, not confirmed attacks.
- Gulf security stories
- 11since tracking began; 26 vendor announcements left out
- Ransomware claims in the GCC
- 139last 12 months
- Most named in the news
- United Arab Emirates4 stories
- Most blamed for Gulf attacks
- None yetno story blamed a country
Country by country
| Country | In the news | Ransomware claims | Sector hit most | Gang seen most |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| United Arab Emirates | 4 | 79 | Professional Services (14) | coinbasecartel (12) |
| Saudi Arabia | 3 | 31 | Professional Services (5) | incransom (4) |
| Qatar | 1 | 8 | Professional Services (3) | qilin (3) |
| Kuwait | 0 | 7 | Technology (2) | clop (2) |
| Bahrain | 0 | 3 | Retail & E-Commerce (1) | incransom (1) |
| Oman | 0 | 11 | Financial Services (2) | lockbit5 (4) |
News: security stories naming the country as where it happened. Claims: the last 12 months.
Ransomware claims in the GCC, month by month
Hover or tab through a month for its count. The lighter bar is the month in progress.
Show as a table
| Month | Claims naming a GCC country |
|---|---|
| November 2025 | 14 |
| December 2025 | 16 |
| January 2026 | 6 |
| February 2026 | 13 |
| March 2026 | 10 |
| April 2026 | 10 |
| May 2026 | 10 |
| June 2026 | 9 |
| July 2026 | 13 |
| August 2026 | 15 |
| September 2026 | 8 |
| October 2026 | 15 |
In SentryFeed's news: October 2026 11.
Sectors hit
From ransomware claims naming a GCC country, 12 months so far.
- Professional Services24
- Manufacturing16
- Retail & E-Commerce14
- Technology13
- Transportation13
- Financial Services11
- Energy & Utilities7
- Hospitality6
Gangs active in the Gulf
By claims naming a GCC country.
- thegentlemen17
- incransom13
- coinbasecartel12
- qilin11
- dragonforce10
- lockbit58
- clop7
- everest6
Who's blamed
Countries the news blames for attacks on the Gulf. This is what the reporting says, not proven attribution.
No Gulf story has blamed a country yet.
Latest Gulf stories
Low.
Iran-linked Handala hacking group sends bouquets and letters to Israel polling sites
Low.
UAE Transitions 50% of Gov't Services to Agentic AI
Medium. Described as critical
PHP vulnerability: Websites go offline amid critical security update
Medium. Breach
Certes puts data protection beyond the breach in focus
Low.
Ex-OpenAI Engineer Held Over Secret Recorder, Saudi Ties
Low.
Protectt.ai issues advisory for fraud risk during live mobile banking sessions
Medium. Breach
Certes puts data protection beyond breach in focus
Medium. Breach
Certes puts data protection beyond breach in focus
News from SentryFeed's sources, with the Gulf's own outlets (The National, Tahawultech, Security Middle East) filtered for vendor announcements. Ransomware claims: Source: Ransomware.live, counts only. See also the map's Gulf view and ransomware claims worldwide.