Saudi Arabia to establish 'international cybersecurity institute'

Saudi Arabia is setting up an international cybersecurity institute by royal decree, state media reported on Wednesday.

Saudi King Salman issued a royal decree ordering the creation of a "financially and administratively independent" institute, the Saudi Press Agency reported.

The Global Cybersecurity Forum Institute's advisory and trustee boards are to feature experts from around the world, as Saudi Arabia tries to position itself as a leader in the field of cybersecurity, SPA reported the decree as saying.

The Global Cybersecurity Forum (GCF) – founded by the Saudi government's National Cybersecurity Authority – announced the establishment of the institute via Twitter on Wednesday.

"We are delighted to announce the establishment of the GCF Institute – an action-oriented platform that will unite global efforts, address systemic challenges, and unlock the many opportunities presented by cyberspace," read a tweet from the forum published on Wednesday.

The institute’s establishment came ahead of the Global Cybersecurity Forum in Riyadh in November.

Saudi Arabia has been accused of breaching cyber privacy, including through use of the Israeli NSO Group’s Pegasus spyware.

A major investigation by journalists and human rights groups found in 2021 that Saudi Arabia, along with a whole host of other countries, had used Pegasus to spy on and track human rights activists and media workers.

Riyadh denied the investigation’s findings.