Mr Atallah was speaking at a Press conference organised by the Etisalat Academy to announce details of the fourth Middle East Information Technology Security Conference (MEITSEC 2004) to be held from December 12 to 14 later this year. The conference will be organised under the patronage of Dr Mohammed Khalfan bin Kharbash, UAE Minister of State for Financial and Industrial Affairs, and Chairman of the Emirates Telecommunication Corporation (Etisalat).

Underlining the importance of information technology security which has become a major global concern, Dr Doaa Fares, General Manager of the Etisalat Academy, said that the event is an ideal opportunity for IT security experts and professionals to meet in one place and discuss the latest in the field of information technology security and other related issues.

“The recommendations and suggestions that emanate from this meet have been documented and forwarded to relevant government bodies and the private sector across the region and elsewhere,” Dr Fares told Khaleej Times, adding that the conference has definitely had a contribution towards shaping up of laws regarding cyber crime and relevant issues.

Earlier Dr Fares revealed that this year the event will host 30 international speakers, and is expected to be attended by not less than 500 delegates from all over the world. It will also feature a group of activities similar in rarity to the Virtual Hacking Court that took the business and law communities by storm, and drew the attention of IT security executives.

The panel addressing the Press conference also included Ahmed bin Ali, Public Relations Manager Etisalat; Vikram Suri, Symantec Country Manager for Southern Gulf and Levant; Gilbert Lacroix, Vice-President and General Manager, Computer Associates in Arab Countries; Peter Kwishthout, Macfee International's Market and Channel Manager; and Rafaah Nakhlah, Business Development Manager, Etisalat Academy.

The event will see the latest technologies employed to tackle IT incidents discussed, while a special session will be dedicated to a competition between two groups, the 'good' white hats and the red hats.

Cyber crime investigation, Dr Fares said, has drawn special attention from the technical committee for the event and sessions dedicated to the investigation of financial crimes such as hacking of a stock market network. According to Dr Fares the event will lay emphasis on international collaboration for tackling cyber crime, and experts at the conference will discuss issues ranging from its investigation to 'e-forensics' and procedures of law.