Criminal groups operating in the UAE are increasingly turning to artificial intelligence to scale financial crimes, deploying automated fraud services, AI-assisted phishing operations and sophisticated laundering techniques that move illicit funds with greater speed and concealment, according to a newly released analytical study.
The findings are outlined in Anatomy of a Digital Threat, a paper jointly produced by the General Secretariat of the National Anti-Money Laundering and Combatting the Financing of Terrorism and Proliferation Financing Committee and financial-crime intelligence firm Themis. The study characterises AI as a “force multiplier” that allows illicit networks to expand their reach while lowering operational costs and risks.
The research was unveiled during Abu Dhabi Finance Week 2025, where it anchored a panel discussion titled Criminal Code: Mapping the Cybercrime Economy. The session examined how digital tools are reshaping the structure and scale of cyber-enabled financial crime across jurisdictions.
According to the analysis, fraud schemes targeting individuals and businesses in the UAE are becoming more technologically layered. Criminal actors are blending AI-generated materials with social engineering across multiple platforms, while automating payment movements to obscure audit trails. These patterns reflect several recent cases involving UAE residents, where perpetrators relied on synthetic identities, impersonated trusted communication channels and exploited virtual assets to move illegal proceeds.
Dr Ebrahim Al Alkeem, director of the National Risks and Policies Department at the General Secretariat, said the pace of change leaves little room for fragmented responses. “Given the sustained, rapid evolution of cyber-enabled financial crime, the integration of current research, such as this paper, is indispensable to the wider National Risk Assessment (NRA) efforts being executed within the UAE… (for) coordinated, comprehensive, and forward-looking preventative measures.”
The paper outlines how criminal networks now commonly combine encrypted messaging platforms, virtual assets, automated transactions and online marketplaces to facilitate fraud, traffic illicit goods and transfer funds across borders. It also details regulatory and policy reforms underway in the UAE, including tighter supervision of virtual-asset service providers, expanded cyber-intelligence capabilities and updated AML, CFT and CPF controls aligned with federal legislation introduced this year.
The study places these risks against the backdrop of a rapidly expanding digital economy. The UAE’s fintech sector is forecast to reach $3.5 billion in 2025, while crypto-related inflows surpassed $34 billion last year. The paper notes that although these trends fuel innovation and growth, they also increase exposure to cyber-enabled money laundering, terrorist financing and proliferation financing threats.
Dickon Johnstone, chief executive of Themis, said the gap between criminal innovation and institutional preparedness remains a concern. “As cyber-enabled financial crime accelerates, the need for intelligence-led and technology-driven solutions becomes ever more critical.”
