The Cyber Economics Center, established in collaboration between the Global Cybersecurity Forum (GCF) and the World Economic Forum (WEF), held its third Executive Committee meeting to review the center's main research tracks and set priorities for the next phase.

Members reviewed progress on the center's five strategic pillars: measuring the macroeconomic impact of cybersecurity; analyzing and measuring the financial and reputational consequences of cyber incidents; developing skills and workforce in line with labor market requirements to help close the global cybersecurity skills gap; building cyber resilience indicators across sectors and industries to provide practical measurement tools for decision-makers; and strengthening risk management mechanisms with economic models based on scientific and systematic analysis.

Eng. Alaa bint Mohammed Al-Fadhel, Director General of the Cyber Economics Center, stated that the economic impact of cybersecurity is gaining increasing importance for governments, businesses, and societies worldwide, noting a strategic shift in the global view of the cybersecurity sector and its role in driving development and prosperity for nations.

She added that the Cyber Economics Center contributes to enhancing the understanding of the economic dimension of cybersecurity through scientific research, systematic studies, multilateral international cooperation, and evidence-based analyses, providing robust tools for policy formulation and strategy development. The center aims to empower decision-makers in countries and organizations to make decisions based on sound analyses and accurate indicators that maximize the return on cybersecurity at both micro and macroeconomic levels.

The center's Executive Committee comprises a select group of decision-makers and international leaders from various sectors worldwide: His Excellency Eng. Majid bin Mohammed Al-Mazeed, Governor of the National Cybersecurity Authority; Lee Sang-jung, President of the Korea Internet & Security Agency; Chris Inglis, former National Cyber Director at the White House; Dr. Saad bin Saleh Al-Aboodi, CEO of the Saudi Information Technology Company (SITE); Dr. Stephan Sroka, Lead Economist for Infrastructure at the World Bank; Heidi Crebo-Rediker, Senior Fellow at the Geo-Economics Center of the U.S. Council on Foreign Relations; Professor Sadi Creese, Professor of Cybersecurity at the University of Oxford; John Defterios, energy markets and emerging economies expert and former Emerging Markets Editor at CNN; Dr. Oyku Isik, Co-Chair of the World Economic Forum's Global Future Council on Cybersecurity; Eng. Abdulrahman bin Mohammed Al-Hassan, CEO of the Global Cybersecurity Forum; Akshay Joshi, Head of the World Economic Forum's Cybersecurity Centre; and Eng. Alaa bint Mohammed Al-Fadhel, Director General of the Cyber Economics Center.

The center, whose launch was announced during the World Economic Forum's annual meeting in Davos in 2025, is a global platform based in Riyadh dedicated to advancing research and studies, cross-sector collaboration, and developing evidence-based strategies at the intersection of cybersecurity and economics. The center works with its international partners to provide decision-makers with the knowledge and insights needed to measure and leverage the economic value of cybersecurity, strengthening cybersecurity as a key pillar of economic growth.