News

Exposed UN Database Left Sensitive Data Vulnerable Online

The unsecured files contained the data of organizations combating violence against women, posing a severe risk for vulnerable groups.

Published

2 years ago

October 25, 2024

Nour Nasir

exposed un database left sensitive data vulnerable online

A United Nations Trust Fund database designed to combat violence against women was recently found openly accessible online, revealing over 115,000 files. The exposed documents included sensitive personal and organizational information from groups that partner with or receive support from UN Women and included staffing, contracts, letters, and even financial audits.

Security researcher Jeremiah Fowler discovered the unsecured database, which lacked password protection or other access controls, and promptly notified the UN, who swiftly secured the database. Fowler notes that these types of data exposures are common, but stresses the importance of maintaining awareness about such vulnerabilities:

“They’re doing incredible work, helping real people in challenging situations, but cybersecurity remains a critical issue,” Fowler explained. “I’ve found numerous examples of exposed data before, but in this case, it’s about organizations aiding people at risk simply for existing in certain regions”.

UN Women acknowledged the incident in a statement, expressing gratitude for the collaboration with cybersecurity experts and that it had launched an investigation.

The exposed data presents multiple security concerns. Financial audits in the database included bank account details, and the disclosures revealed how organizations receive and allocate their funding. Additionally, the information provided insights into staffing and internal operations, which could be exploited to trace connections between civil society organizations.

Also Read: The Top 10 Worst Cyberattacks In The Middle East Revealed

“You’ve got details on organizations, their staff, and projects with budgets in the millions,” Fowler explained. “If this information landed in the wrong hands, it could be used by scammers or even authoritarian regimes to identify which organizations are working where and who they’re collaborating with”.

Fowler expressed particular concern for the people mentioned in the database, many of whom had shared deeply personal experiences, including stories of abuse, kidnapping, and other traumatic events, likely under the assumption that their identities would remain protected.

If this incident spurs a broader review of the UN’s data security infrastructure, it could help prevent future breaches and mitigate risks for the vulnerable populations UN Women and other UN organizations serve.

News

Microsoft Plans $10 Billion-Plus Gulf Expansion Despite Iran Conflict

Security is shaping Microsoft’s approach, from resilience work with governments to what it will say about how the money splits by country.

Published

4 days ago

September 24, 2026

Nour Nasir

Microsoft

Microsoft is planning more than $10 billion of investment across the UAE, Saudi Arabia, Qatar and Kuwait through 2030, Vice Chair and President Brad Smith told Reuters, calling the spending schedule aggressive. The Iranian conflict that began on February 28 has not persuaded the company to scale back.

“We’re sustaining all the investments we planned to make before this conflict started, and we are in fact adding to them,” Smith said. The $10 billion-plus total does not, however, show how large those additions are.

The investment, which Smith described as part of Microsoft’s continued infrastructure expansion, is aimed at cloud and AI infrastructure and at the company’s growing regional operations. Microsoft also intends to put more than $400 million into subsea and terrestrial connectivity across the Middle East by 2030.

The spending fits the region’s own ambitions too. Gulf governments have been investing heavily in AI infrastructure as part of a push to diversify their economies beyond oil and gas and turn themselves into global technology hubs. Major cloud and AI providers have been drawn in part by the land and relatively low-cost energy on offer.

Microsoft is widening its partnerships with regional AI companies, though not on identical terms. In 2024, it invested $1.5 billion in Abu Dhabi-based G42 for a minority stake, and Smith currently sits on G42’s board. Saudi Arabia’s Humain and Qatar’s Qai are working with Microsoft on selected priority areas, but Smith said the company does not plan to make capital investments in either.

Also Read: Egypt’s Mobile Wallets Are Booming, But Cash Still Has Power

The conflict has added another strand to Microsoft’s work in the region. Since it began, Smith said, the company has supported regional partners with digital resilience assessments, and it is now working with Gulf countries through a digital resilience initiative focused on preparedness and the protection of critical data.

So far, the company has given no country-by-country breakdown of the investment, citing security among other factors. So while the headline figure is public, how Microsoft divides the spending among the four countries is not.