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UAE to quintuple solar PV capacity to 32.3GW by 2035

Naushad K. Cherrayil
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UAE to quintuple solar PV capacity to 32.3GW by 2035
  • Solar PV is now the fastest-growing technology in the UAE, driven by record-low tariffs, high irradiation, ample land, and policy certainty
  • Gas-fired capacity is forecast to edge from 44.4GW in 2025 to nearly 46GW by 2035, while nuclear capacity remains around 5.3GW at Barakah, providing approximately 34TWh annually.

The United Arab Emirates (UAE) will expand solar photovoltaic capacity from 6.7GW in 2025 to 32.3GW by 2035, a compound annual growth rate above 17 per cent, according to GlobalData. Solar generation is projected to rise from 15.8TWh in 2025 to 75.4TWh by 2035.

Major projects underpin growth, including Al Dhafra Solar PV, billed as the world’s largest single-site facility; the 1.2GW Noor Abu Dhabi Solar Park, estimated to cut about 1 million metric tonness of CO2 annually; and Dubai’s Mohammed bin Rashid Al Maktoum Solar Park, targeting enough output to power nearly 800,000 homes by 2030.

Under the UAE Energy Strategy 2050, the country plans about $54 billion in clean and alternative energy investments. The 2023 update aims to triple renewable capacity to roughly 14GW by 2030, with targets of 50 per cent clean electricity and a 70 per cent reduction in the power sector’s carbon footprint by mid-century.

GlobalData analyst Mohammed Ziauddin said solar PV is now the fastest-growing technology in the UAE, driven by record-low tariffs, high irradiation, ample land, and policy certainty.

Gas and nuclear will continue to anchor reliability. Gas-fired capacity is forecast to edge from 44.4GW in 2025 to nearly 46GW by 2035, while nuclear capacity remains around 5.3GW at Barakah, providing approximately 34TWh annually.

The UAE plans to integrate large-scale solar with grid stability measures, including gas flexibility, nuclear baseload, and storage such as pumped hydro and batteries, Ziauddin said.

Apple’s MacBook Neo is most repairable notebook since 2014

Mohammed Fahad
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Apple’s MacBook Neo is most repairable notebook since 2014
  • Uses screws instead of glue or rivets to secure the battery and keyboard, and simplifying replacements for parts like the camera and fingerprint sensor.

Apple’s new MacBook Neo—the laptop it announced last week with a starting price of $499 for students—is the most repairable Mac notebook since 2014, according to an iFixit analysis released Friday.

iFixit, which publishes repair guides and sells parts and tools, also rates devices for ease of repair; laptop makers including Dell and Lenovo have used those ratings to improve their designs.

In its Friday teardown, iFixit found Apple made key changes from previous MacBooks, such as using screws instead of glue or rivets to secure the battery and keyboard, and simplifying replacements for parts like the camera and fingerprint sensor.

Apple is widely seen as targeting education markets also served by Google’s low-cost Chromebooks. According to iFixit CEO Kyle Wiens, Chromebooks are frequently repaired in schools, with some districts—such as Oakland, California—training student interns to perform fixes.

Even so, the MacBook Neo scored only 6 out of 10 on iFixit’s repairability scale; some recent Lenovo ThinkPads have scored 9s or 10s. Apple’s pursuit of thinner, lighter devices over the past decade has generally made repairs harder.

Wiens noted that the Neo’s 8 GB of DRAM is soldered directly to the logic board as part of the main processor package—consistent with recent Mac designs—preventing memory upgrades. He argued this could hinder the Neo’s ability to run increasingly complex on-device AI applications, despite Apple’s emphasis on the privacy benefits of local AI processing.

He suggested Apple could improve future models by adding an upgradeable layer of memory. “Apple’s future for privacy-centered AI has to be local models,” Wiens said. “I would argue this is a flaw across Apple’s entire Mac product line.”

Adobe agrees to $150m settlement over hidden fees, cancellation hurdles

Ana Mary Joseph
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Adobe agrees to $150m settlement over hidden fees, cancellation hurdles

Adobe has agreed to a $150 million settlement to resolve a US government lawsuit alleging it concealed hefty subscription termination fees and made cancellations difficult, the Department of Justice said.

The accord includes a $75 million civil penalty and $75 million in free services for customers, and requires court approval.

Filed in June 2024 by the DoJ and FTC, the complaint accused Adobe of burying early-termination fees for its “annual paid monthly” plan—sometimes hundreds of dollars—and steering customers through cumbersome online and phone cancellation processes.

Prosecutors said the practices violated the Restore Online Shoppers’ Confidence Act, which requires clear disclosure of material terms and affirmative consumer consent for recurring charges. The settlement also resolves claims against two Adobe executives.

Adobe said it has streamlined and made its sign-up and cancellation flows more transparent, while denying wrongdoing. Subscriptions accounted for 97 per cent of Adobe’s $6.4 billion revenue in the quarter ended February 27.

The settlement was announced a day after CEO Shantanu Narayen said he would step down after more than 18 years, amid investor concerns over how AI could affect Adobe’s outlook.

Shutdown of ‘SocksEscort’ proxy network severs 369,000 hijacked routers

Naushad K. Cherrayil
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Shutdown of ‘SocksEscort’ proxy network severs 369,000 hijacked routers
  • Investigators linked the platform to AVrecon malware targeting some 1,200 device models—often older or unpatched gear—from vendors including Cisco, D‑Link, Hikvision, MikroTik, Netgear, TP‑Link, and Zyxel.
  • FBI warnes that many small‑office/home‑office routers remain attractive targets, particularly end‑of‑life devices lacking security updates.

Authorities have dismantled SocksEscort, a massive cybercrime platform that quietly hijacked about 369,000 WiFi routers and internet‑connected devices to mask hackers’ activity behind residential IP addresses.

Marketed as a “residential proxy network,” SocksEscort sold “static residential IPs with unlimited bandwidth,” offering plans from $15 per month for 30 IPs to $200 for 5,000 proxies.

The US Department of Justice said law enforcement in eight countries collaborated to bring down the service, which exploited thousands of residential routers to facilitate large‑scale fraud. Authorities seized 34 domains and 23 servers in seven countries, and the US froze $3.5 million in cryptocurrency.

Europol said infected modems used by the proxy service have been disconnected.

Investigators linked the platform to AVrecon malware targeting some 1,200 device models—often older or unpatched gear—from vendors including Cisco, D‑Link, Hikvision, MikroTik, Netgear, TP‑Link, and Zyxel. Before the takedown, SocksEscort offered access to roughly 8,000 live routers, including about 2,500 in the US.

According to the DoJ, criminals used SocksEscort to conceal their locations while conducting account takeovers, filing fraudulent unemployment insurance claims, and perpetrating other financial scams.

Examples cited include a New York crypto customer defrauded of $1 million, a Pennsylvania manufacturer losing $700,000, and US service members with MILITARY STAR cards defrauded of $100,000. Authorities estimate SocksEscort took in more than €5 million ($5.72 million), relying on anonymous crypto payments.

Europol called proxy services a key enabler of global cybercrime, noting SocksEscort’s botnet also supported ransomware operations, DDoS attacks, distribution of child sexual abuse material, and other offenses.

In a flash advisory, the FBI warned that many small‑office/home‑office routers remain attractive targets, particularly end‑of‑life devices lacking security updates. The bureau urged users to update operating systems, firmware, and software; replace unsupported hardware; disable or restrict remote administration; and monitor logs and network traffic.

It also cautioned that free VPNs, “pay‑for‑bandwidth” apps, pirated software, and some low‑cost devices may surreptitiously enroll users into residential proxy networks. The FBI listed commonly abused models, including D‑Link DIR‑818LW/850L/860L; Hikvision IP cameras; Netgear DGN2200v4 and R7000; TP‑Link Archer C20, TL‑WR840N/849N/841N; and multiple Zyxel routers such as VMG3925‑B10A/B10C.

Despite the takedown, authorities warned that insecure routers remain at risk from other botnets, underscoring the need for basic security hygiene in home and small‑business networks.

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Interpol-led sweep targets global cybercrime operations

Mohammed Fahad
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Interpol-led sweep targets global cybercrime operations
  • Operation, codenamed Operation Synergia III, targeted phishing, malware, and ransomware attacks.

Interpol has taken down tens of thousands of IP addresses and servers hosting cybercrime operations—including fake casinos and sextortion schemes—in a coordinated crackdown spanning 72 countries and territories.

The operation, codenamed Operation Synergia III, targeted phishing, malware, and ransomware, leading to 94 arrests and another 110 suspects under investigation. Authorities seized 212 electronic devices during raids conducted from July 2025 to January 2026.

“Cybercrime in 2026 is more sophisticated and destructive than ever before, but Operation Synergia III stands as a powerful testament to what global cooperation can achieve,” said Neal Jetton, head of Interpol’s Cybercrime Directorate.

As part of the effort, law enforcement in Macau identified more than 33,000 phishing and fraudulent websites, including fake casinos and pages impersonating government and payment services. Interpol said many scams lured victims into topping up accounts on fraudulent sites or stealing personal and credit card data.

Stats

In Togo, police arrested 10 suspects in a fraud ring that blended technical intrusions—such as social media account takeovers—with social engineering schemes, including romance scams and sextortion. After hijacking accounts, criminals posed as the account holder to manipulate contacts into sending money.

Bangladesh authorities arrested 40 suspects and seized 134 devices tied to loan and job scams, identity theft, and credit card fraud. Several investigations remain ongoing, Interpol said.

The latest sweep follows prior actions: in June 2025, Interpol disrupted 20,000 malicious IP addresses and domains linked to infostealer malware, and in August it dismantled 11,500 cybercriminal networks across Africa, with 1,200 arrests connected to schemes stealing nearly half a billion dollars from thousands of victims.

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Meta and global police dismantle Southeast Asia scam networks

Mohammed Fahad
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Meta and global police dismantle Southeast Asia scam networks
  • Meta says it took down accounts directly involved in scams as well as profiles supporting the infrastructure behind them.
  • Authorities said the targeted networks were linked to scam centres across parts of Cambodia, Myanmar, and Laos, operating like industrial businesses and coordinating romance scams, cryptocurrency investment fraud, and impersonation schemes to extract money from victims.

Meta, working with international law enforcement, has dismantled large criminal networks in Southeast Asia that used social media to run industrial‑scale scams, removing more than 150,000 fraudulent Facebook accounts and prompting 21 arrests tied to organised fraud groups targeting victims worldwide.

The action was part of “Joint Disruption Week,” led by Thailand’s Royal Thai Police Anti‑Cyber Scam Center with the U.S. Federal Bureau of Investigation and the US Department of Justice’s Scam Center Strike Force. Investigators from the United Kingdom, Canada, Japan, Singapore, Australia, and Indonesia also participated.

Combating scams

Meta said it took down accounts directly involved in scams as well as profiles supporting the infrastructure behind them. “These operations cause real harm—they upend lives, destroy trust,” the company said, adding that combating scams “requires ongoing collaboration with partners across the tech industry and law enforcement.”

Authorities said the targeted networks were linked to scam centres across parts of Cambodia, Myanmar, and Laos, operating like industrial businesses and coordinating romance scams, cryptocurrency investment fraud, and impersonation schemes to extract money from victims.

The push builds on a December campaign that removed about 59,000 accounts, pages, and groups tied to similar networks. “Our work to combat scams is never done,” said Chris Sonderby, Meta’s Vice President and Deputy General Counsel.

Meta added that in 2025 it removed 10.9 million accounts tied to criminal scam centres and blocked more than 159 million scam ads globally. The company also announced new user protections, including warnings for suspicious friend requests and advanced scam detection in Messenger.

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