Data moments

Data security

Yunus Al Nasser

September 21, 2020

Every time I read the phrase of His Highness Sheikh Mohammed bin Rashid Al Maktoum, Vice President and Prime Minister of the UAE and Ruler of Dubai: “We do not wait for events, but rather make them.” I see its meaning embodied in the steps of our country, and the most important of which is building the future and not waiting for it, so even the technologies that They are adopted in the UAE and have a future dimension, and their importance is measured by what they will mean in people's lives, not only today, but for decades to come.

This time, in "Data Moments", I wanted to talk about adding to the human safety experience in the Emirates, which is based on employing data through the Internet of Things technology as "sensors" in fire prevention. The addition is not in the type of technology, but in the area and directions for its application.

A decision by the Council of Ministers was recently issued, requiring all residential homeowners to install fire detectors, and to participate in the electronic system of the General Command of Civil Defense. The decision also stipulated that federal or local government agencies concerned with permits to construct residential homes in the country require the installation of fire detectors, and participate in The electronic system, as a condition for granting a residential home completion certificate.

The news stopped me, not only for its strategic importance in the preservation of life and human safety, which is the first priority in the leadership's vision, but for its link to the move to expand the scope of smart safety based on real-time analysis of live data, by linking fire detection devices to the electronic system of the General Command of Civil Defense.

This step involves employing Internet of Things technologies, represented by the customary heat and smoke sensors, which in turn feed the system with data that have multiple, immediate and future effects.

I wanted to share it with you here from the point of view of smart cities and data science: the first immediate dimension is to build a special national understanding of fire accidents, in which every house is a part, and thus enhancing our capabilities in this area as an achievement that adds to the achievements of the Ministry of Interior and Civil Defense specifically.

The second dimension is that connecting all homes with devices within three years is an opportunity to build a national early warning system that will enhance with time smart decision-making, and raise the efficiency of employing capabilities and capabilities dedicated to facing crises, and the third dimension is that mandatory installation of fire alarms is an area for future expansion In the quality of data that can be obtained, such as indoor air safety, smart home systems, and other applications based on data analysis, the result is data safety, not only from fires, but also environmental safety, and safety for the future of energy in our country, which is considered a pioneer in this field par excellence. .

To read the previous articles of the writer please click on its name . 

"The technologies that are adopted in the country have a future dimension and their importance is measured by what they will mean in people's lives."