Engagements that delivered

Challenge: A large UAE diversified services group had grown through acquisition to 42 business entities with fragmented IT infrastructure, inconsistent security policies, and no centralised security leadership. Regulatory scrutiny was increasing and the board had limited visibility of security posture.

Approach: CyHelm embedded as the organisation’s CISO function, consolidating security governance across all entities. We built a unified security policy framework, implemented a group-wide risk register, introduced monthly board reporting, and deployed Microsoft 365 Defender and Cisco security stack across the estate.

Result: A zero-breach record was maintained across the entire 5+ year engagement period, despite multiple targeted phishing campaigns, two ransomware attempts that were blocked, and significant infrastructure expansion. The board now receives a monthly security brief in language they can act on.

Challenge: A UAE real estate developer needed ISO 27001 certification to satisfy enterprise client requirements and demonstrate security maturity. The internal IT team had no prior experience with ISO implementation and the business had no existing ISMS documentation.

Approach: CyHelm led the full programme — scope definition, risk assessment, Statement of Applicability, complete ISMS documentation suite (48 policies and procedures), staff awareness training, and an 8-week internal audit programme to prepare for external certification.

Result: Certification achieved on first attempt with zero major non-conformities raised. The audit took 2 days. CyHelm stayed on for three months post-certification to embed the maintenance cycle into the internal team.

Challenge: A global SaaS company entering the UAE market needed to understand their compliance obligations under NESA, the UAE PDPL, and the TRA Cybersecurity framework. They had strong security controls but no knowledge of UAE-specific regulatory mapping.

Approach: CyHelm conducted a structured gap assessment, mapping the company’s existing controls (ISO 27001 certified) to UAE regulatory requirements. We identified 14 specific gaps, prioritised them by risk and regulatory urgency, and produced a 90-day remediation roadmap.

Result: The full assessment and roadmap was delivered in 2 weeks. The client entered the UAE market on schedule, with all high-priority gaps remediated within 60 days and a clear plan to close remaining items by end of year.