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SHADOW DATA: A HIDDEN RISK IN THE GULF

Published

4 months ago

June 9, 2026

By Yazen Rahmeh, a Cybersecurity Expert at SearchInform

Digital transformation across the UAE and Saudi Arabia brings new opportunities and prospects for enhancing efficiency and growth. However, it also causes new challenges to data protection. As digital environments expand, data spreads across endpoints, cloud storage, and internal environments, escaping oversight by security and compliance teams.

This is shadow data, and it may be one of your organization’s most underestimated risk.

What Is Shadow Data?

Despite all efforts, some business data can be stored and processed outside official IT systems. As a result, a company won’t even know that such datasets exist.

There are a lot of reasons behind the creation of shadow data. Basic examples are:

Files stored in personal accounts. An employee can send important files to personal email or cloud storage “just in case.”
Access to corporate data from personal devices. A person can log in to corporate cloud services from a personal tablet or laptop. As a result, sensitive documents can be downloaded to a personal device. This usually happens when someone is working overtime or wants to keep important files readily available.
Unaccounted copies of sensitive data. An employee can simply copy and paste records from a CRM system or a customer spreadsheet into a file on their workstation. As a result, sensitive data may bypass security controls, increasing the risk of data leakage.
Some business units can adopt SaaS services without oversight. Employees usually do it to boost their productivity or if whitelisted tools are perceived as slow or bulky.
Test datasets and temporary databases. Sometimes confidential data can duplicate during migration from one service to another or if developers use production data for test or development environments.

These examples may seem abstract, but the recent Cybersecurity and Infrastructure Security Agency (CISA) data leak shows that shadow data is a real-world threat.

The leak reportedly originated from a contractor’s GitHub repository, which was being used as a working scratchpad. The repository exposed various sensitive records, including AWS keys and plaintext passwords for internal CISA systems. An individual had simply copied sensitive data to make their work more convenient. To do so, the contractor disabled GitHub’s default security setting that prevents users from publishing secrets in public repositories.

Why Shadow Data Is a Business Risk

Increased Risk of Data Leaks

Consider a common scenario: an employee stores confidential data on a personal laptop or cloud service. As a result:

Sensitive records could be stolen via phishing or malware, as the laptop isn’t protected by enterprise-grade security controls.
An employee could share the laptop with other individuals. Shared devices increase the risk of data exposure.
Unauthorized cloud backups. An employee may configure automatic file backups to a cloud service. As a result, sensitive data can leave the protected perimeter and be duplicated in cloud storage, increasing the risk of unauthorized access or data leakage.

That’s how a small and seemingly irrelevant piece of ungoverned data could lead to a major incident. In fact, in 2024, one in three data breaches involved shadow data, according to IBM’s Cost of a Data Breach 2024 report.

One of the most recent cases of data leaks, involving shadow data, is the Abu Dhabi Finance Week exposure. An independent researcher discovered unsecured cloud storage with ID details.

Event representatives stated that only the researcher accessed the data and that the incident affected a limited number of participants. According to them, the issue was caused by a misconfigured cloud storage system managed by a third-party provider.

The incident is the perfect example of shadow data, as the data was copied outside of secured corporate infrastructure and had been left unmanaged.

Regulatory Pressure

Shadow data also presents compliance risks. When using a cloud service, it is essential to verify the geographic location of the data center where the data is stored. Data could be stored at a data center in a different country if you didn’t specify a server location.

As a result, if shadow data includes confidential records such as customer details or transaction records, it will be transferred and stored abroad. From a legal perspective, such misconfiguration is a cross-border transfer and lead to regulatory fines for violations of data protection regulations.

Saudi Arabia’s Personal Data Protection Law dedicates a lot of attention to data residency and cross-border transfers. Organizations, especially in regulated sectors, such as financial institutions, may be required to store certain categories of data within the Kingdom. Companies may need regulatory approval before transferring data to foreign data centers to avoid penalties.

Emirati businesses have less strict conditions for cross-border data transfers. However, there are limitations for banking, payments, healthcare, and telecom organizations and governmental entities. Companies from these industries must store confidential data, such as health records, payment transactions, and customer data, within the country.

Lack of visibility equals lack of control, and regulators do not accept invisibility as an argument.

How to Bring Shadow Data Under Control

Eliminating shadow data entirely is unrealistic. The goal is to make it visible and manageable without slowing down the business.

A Practical Starting Checklist

Discover regulated data, especially data subject to local PDPLs requirements, cybersecurity frameworks issued by National Cybersecurity Authority in the KSA, and Information Assurance Regulation by TDRA in the UAE. It is essential to identify all information that qualifies as confidential and valuable, incl. unaccounted copies of such data.
Map where this data is actually stored and shared, not just where it should be. Sensitive data can be stored on-prem or in cloud environments. Look for data discovery solutions. Ideally, choose a solution that combines data discovery and data classification, like DCAP software.
Classify files & distribute access rights. Use specialized tools to analyze file content and classify it in accordance with a local classification scheme. The next step is to assign user access rights to sensitive data based on employees’ roles and responsibilities.
Control data transfer channels, including cloud storage, SaaS tools, and USB-devices. Use DLP systems to prevent unauthorized spread of sensitive data. Advanced DLP solutions monitor cloud services, as well as traditional channels, such as email or web browsers.

Conclusion

Data protection is not a one-time initiative. It is an ongoing discipline. Security achieved today must still hold tomorrow — and next year.

Organizations that treat data security as a strategic investment, rather than a compliance obligation, build resilience, regulatory confidence, and long-term business stability.

Shadow data may be invisible. But its consequences are not.

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Good Hair Days Start At Breakfast: Mary Ruth’s Liquid Multivitamin + Hair Growth, Now on iHerb Middle East

Published

1 day ago

September 29, 2026

Integrator Web-Editor

The days of thinking haircare starts and ends in the shower are officially behind us. Today’s approach is a little more holistic, bringing together everything from your favorite hair products to the little wellness habits that make up your day. With iHerb Middle East offering an extensive selection of wellness, beauty and self-care essentials from leading global brands, discovering new favorites for every part of your day has never been easier.

Founded by health educator and nutritional consultant MaryRuth Ghiyam, the brand built its name on liquid vitamins that are as easy to take as they are to enjoy. Today it is known for clean, thoughtfully formulated supplements for every stage of life.

MaryRuth’s Liquid Morning Multivitamin + Hair Growth – AED 225.46

Consider this your morning multivitamin with a beauty twist. Featuring Lustriva®, it is formulated to support hair growth and healthier-looking skin, but that’s only part of the story. With 10,000 mcg of biotin, all eight B vitamins, vitamin D3 and zinc, it also supports energy metabolism, immune function and your overall everyday wellness. It comes in an easy liquid format with a peach mango flavor, so it feels less like a chore and more like a little morning treat, and it’s vegan, gluten-free and sugar-free as well. Because your haircare routine deserves a spot beyond the bathroom shelf, too. To order the products, visit https://ae.iherb.com/ and keep an eye on iHerb Middle East Instagram, @iherbmiddleeast, for the latest wellness finds, updates, and offers.

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From Coffee to Wellness: Three Dubai Destinations Shaping Everyday Wellbeing

Published

5 days ago

September 25, 2026

Integrator Web-Editor

Where Coffee, Food & Community Come Together – Roasters Specialty Coffee House

Founded in Dubai, Roasters Specialty Coffee House has grown into one of the UAE’s prominent homegrown specialty coffee brands, combining specialty coffee, all-day dining and a strong focus on craftsmanship and hospitality.

At the heart of the experience is Roasters’ specialty coffee programme, with skilled baristas working with carefully sourced beans and a range of brewing methods, including espresso-based drinks and hand-brewed coffee. Beyond coffee, the cafés offer an extensive all-day menu spanning breakfast favourites, savoury dishes, pastries, desserts and seasonal creations, making the brand suitable for everything from morning meetings and leisurely breakfasts to casual lunches and afternoon coffee breaks.

With locations across some of Dubai’s most prominent neighbourhoods and destinations, Roasters continues to position itself as more than a coffee shop, creating spaces centred around coffee culture, food, community and contemporary Dubai lifestyle.

Location: Multiple locations across Dubai

Cuisine: Specialty Coffee & All-Day Dining

Experience: Specialty coffee, breakfast, pastries, desserts, all-day dining & coffee experiences

A More Connected Approach to Wellness – Wellcube

At Wellcube, this idea comes to life through a more connected approach to wellbeing. The Dubai wellness destination brings together movement, nutrition, recovery, clinical wellness and longevity, creating a space where different parts of health can be considered together rather than in isolation.

Its Tranquil Wellness offering takes the idea even further, creating an environment designed around rest, recovery and feeling restored. From fitness and wellness experiences to treatments, nutrition and spaces designed with wellbeing in mind, the focus is on helping people build healthier routines that can actually fit into everyday life.

Rather than waiting until burnout or exhaustion forces a reset, the approach encourages people to think about wellness as something ongoing — something that can be woven into the week alongside everything else.

A More Considered Approach to Aesthetic Care- Aesthetics by King’s College Hospital London – Dubai

Wellness can also be about the things that make us feel confident, comfortable and more like ourselves.

At Aesthetics by King’s College Hospital London – Dubai, that starts with taking a more considered approach to aesthetic care. The clinic offers personalised treatments across facial rejuvenation, regenerative skin therapies, laser treatments, body contouring, hair restoration and intimate wellness, with care tailored around individual concerns and goals.

Led by Plastic Surgeon and Medical Director Dr. Dragana Spica, the focus is on enhancing rather than transforming, with treatments designed to support skin quality and achieve natural-looking results.

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October Must-Discover Dining, Wellness & Lifestyle Experiences

Published

5 days ago

September 25, 2026

Integrator Web-Editor

Pinktober Affair of Brunch, Wellness & Awareness at Vivaldi, Sheraton Dubai Creek Hotel & Towers

Looking for a leisurely Saturday brunch with good food, live music and a meaningful cause? This October, Vivaldi at Sheraton Dubai Creek Hotel & Towers invites guests to mark Pinktober on October 3 and 10, with an afternoon of Italian-inspired dining and live entertainment. From Beetroot-Crusted Bass Fillet to Oven-Baked Lamb Pie with Jus, guests can indulge in a generous buffet spread showcasing a selection of Italian favourites, before settling into the sounds of a live singer. Set along the picturesque Dubai Creek, Vivaldi offers a relaxed Italian dining experience in an elegant setting, making it a fitting backdrop for an afternoon dedicated to good food, music and breast cancer awareness.

The hotel will also host a Pinktober Wellness TalkonOctober 16, featuring an insightful session led by a medical expert, alongside light bites and refreshments. Taking place in the Ballroom from 11am to 3pm, attendance is complimentary. Guests are requested to register in advance.

When: Saturday, October 3 and October 10 | 1pm to 4pm | What: Pinktober Brunch – Buffet | Where: Vivaldi, Sheraton Dubai Creek Hotel & Towers | Packages: AED 255 with soft beverages | AED 375 with house beverages | AED 125 for Children 6-12 yrs.
For booking: contact +971 4 2071717 or email vivaldi.reservations@sheraton.com or visit website

ANA Teams Up with Hind Al Oud to bring Deep Ahojas to life through a limited-edition dessert.

What if a fragrance could be experienced before it is worn? ANA Emirati Fusion has partnered with luxury fragrance house Hind Al Oud to introduce a limited-edition dessert inspired by Deep Ahojas, the fragrance house’s newest creation. Available from 20 September for AED 47, the dessert combines dark chocolate, honey, dried fig, vanilla, cinnamon and sea salt, translating the fragrance’s warm and layered character into a contemporary Emirati dining experience.

Guests will also receive a complimentary Deep Ahojas fragrance sample with each dessert, along with the opportunity to pre-order the fragrance ahead of its launch. The collaboration brings together contemporary Emirati cuisine and Arabian perfumery through a multisensory experience, reflecting ANA’s approach to connecting food with creativity, culture and modern lifestyle, while offering Hind Al Oud a distinctive way to introduce Deep Ahojas to audiences before its launch.

Ladurée and Nour Arida’s Sorbé Bring Beauty and Pâtisserie Together.

What happens when Sorbé’s beauty-inspired lip butter flavours meet the art of French pâtisserie? From 1 October, Ladurée UAE and Lebanese American model and entrepreneur Nour Arida’s skincare brand Sorbé bring rose, lychee, caramel and pomegranate together in an unexpected sweet collaboration. World Pastry Champion and Ladurée Executive Chef Julien Alvarez transforms these flavours into a trio of individual pâtisseries inspired by caramel, pomegranate and rose lychee, each containing fewer than 100 calories. The collection also includes an exclusive Rose Lychee Macaron, Rose & Lychee Sorbet and a collagen-infused slushie made with fresh fruit and no added sugar. Exclusive macaron boxes in 8, 12, 18 and 24 pieces feature the limited-edition Rose Lychee Macaron alongside favourites including Salted Caramel, Pistachio, Chocolate and Raspberry.

Date: Daily, from 1 October 2026 | Price: Rose & Lychee Sorbet – AED 45 | Trio of Individual Pâtisseries inspired by caramel, pomegranate and rose lychee – AED 39 each Collagen-Infused Slushie – AED 49 (made with fresh fruit and without added suga)

EVIRON – A Korean-Inspired Wellness Drink for Every Occasion

A well-considered drinks table can make all the difference when hosting at home. EVIRON by Clarion International Trading LLC brings a Korean-inspired touch to modern entertaining, offering a light and refreshing option for weekend gatherings, festive celebrations and evenings with friends. Made with Red Korean Ginseng, Hovenia Dulcis and Rubus Coreanus, alongside Vitamin C and B Vitamins, EVIRON draws on Korea’s appreciation for botanical ingredients. Free from alcohol, caffeine, preservatives and refined sugar, it offers a more mindful alternative to traditional soft drinks and high-caffeine beverages. Available across the UAE through Noon, Amazon and Dr Nutrition.