Market Protection Manager

General Commercial Gaming Regulatory Authority - GCGRA; Abu Dhabi; On-site; AED 360,000 - 480,000; Full time

Job summary

General Commercial Gaming Regulatory Authority (GCGRA) seeks a Forensic Investigations Manager to provide technical expertise for Market Protection and Market Integrity in the UAE. You will lead investigations into illegal online gaming, analyze domains, apps and infrastructure, and preserve digital evidence for enforcement actions.

You will also support suitability investigations, develop investigative tools and coordinate with regulators, law enforcement and external partners.

Qualifications

• Bachelor’s degree in a related discipline or equivalent experience.
• Certifications in digital forensics, cybersecurity, OSINT or blockchain investigations are advantageous.
• Experience in regulatory enforcement or law enforcement is a plus.

Responsibilities

• Lead technical and forensic investigations into illegal online gaming activities in the UAE.
• Identify and analyze domains, apps, hosting, payment channels and related infrastructure.
• Use RDAP/WHOIS, passive DNS, certificate records and metadata to map operators and infrastructure.
• Assess geo-blocking, VPN use and domain rotation techniques used to access gaming platforms.
• Coordinate with registrars, ISPs, data centers, CDNs and other intermediaries to support actions.
• Preserve and document digital evidence following legal and forensic standards.
• Prepare technical assessments, reports, blocking requests and regulatory recommendations.

Skills

Investigative skills

Regulatory reporting

Report writing

Judgement

Attention to detail

Cross-functional teamwork

Travel readiness

Education

Bachelor’s degree in Digital Forensics, Cybersecurity, IT, CS, or Law Enforcement

Equivalent mix of education/certifications/experience

OSINT/cybersecurity/blockchain-investigation certifications advantageous

Job description

Job Description

The Forensic Investigations Manager provides technical and forensic expertise to support the GCGRA’s Market Protection and Market Integrity activities.

Approximately 80% of the role supports Market Protection, focusing on the identification, investigation and disruption of illegal online commercial gaming affecting the UAE. This includes analyzing domains, websites, applications, hosting and network infrastructure, payment channels and related technical assets; conducting controlled testing; preserving digital evidence; and supporting blocking and other regulatory enforcement measures.

The remaining 20% supports Market Integrity, providing specialist technical assistance to suitability investigations involving applicants and licensees, particularly in relation to digital infrastructure, game distribution, geo-blocking, cybersecurity, online activity and technology-related representations.

The role also supports the development of the GCGRA’s forensic capabilities, investigative tools, technical procedures and evidence standards, in coordination with internal stakeholders, law enforcement, regulators and relevant industry stakeholders.

Responsibilities

• Lead technical and forensic investigations into illegal online commercial gaming activities affecting the UAE.
• Identify and analyze domains, subdomains, websites, mobile applications, APIs, IP addresses, DNS records, ASNs, hosting infrastructure, payment channels and cryptocurrency wallets.
• Use RDAP/WHOIS, passive DNS, certificate records, source code, metadata, analytics identifiers and other technical indicators to identify related operators, mirror domains and supporting infrastructure.
• Assess domain rotation, redirection, geo-blocking, VPN use and other techniques used to maintain or restrict access to gaming platforms.
• Identify and engage relevant registrars, registries, ISPs, hosting providers, data centers, CDNs, app stores, payment providers and other intermediaries to support disruption and enforcement action.
• Collect, preserve and document digital evidence in accordance with applicable legal requirements, forensic standards and chain-of-custody procedures.
• Prepare technical intelligence assessments, investigation reports, evidence packages, blocking requests and recommendations for regulatory or enforcement action.
• Support Market Integrity with technical analysis relevant to suitability investigations, including game distribution, cybersecurity, digital infrastructure and technology-related regulatory disclosures.
• Design and implement investigative technologies and procedures, including OSINT, internet-monitoring, digital-forensics, geolocation, blockchain-analysis and KYC/CDD/AML capabilities.
• Coordinate with UAE and international regulators, law enforcement agencies, technical service providers and external consultants.
• Provide technical guidance and training to Investigations team members and support internal capability development.
• Report to the Head of Investigations and perform other related duties as assigned.

Preferred qualifications and experience:

• Bachelor’s degree in Digital Forensics, Cybersecurity, Information Technology, Computer Science, Law Enforcement or a related discipline.
• An equivalent combination of education, professional certifications and relevant regulatory or law-enforcement experience may be considered.
• Relevant digital-forensics, cybersecurity, OSINT or blockchain-investigation certifications are advantageous.
• Experience in digital forensics, cyber investigations, online threat intelligence, regulatory enforcement or law enforcement.
• Experience leading technical investigations and presenting findings to senior decision-makers.
• Experience in gaming regulation or another regulated sector is advantageous.
• Arabic-language capability is preferred.

Technical knowledge

• Domains, DNS, passive DNS, RDAP/WHOIS, IP addressing, ASNs, BGP and internet-hosting infrastructure.
• Registrars, registries, ISPs, data centers, cloud hosting, CDNs, reverse proxies and origin-server identification.
• Website architecture, APIs, HTTP/HTTPS, TLS certificates, source code, metadata and infrastructure-link analysis.
• Telecommunications blocking, geolocation, geo-blocking, VPNs, proxies and other circumvention methods.
• Mobile applications, social media, messaging platforms, digital advertising and affiliate networks.
• Payment gateways, merchant infrastructure, cryptocurrency transactions and blockchain analysis.
• Digital-evidence collection, forensic imaging, hashing, metadata extraction, system logs and chain of custody.
• OSINT, closed-source intelligence, internet-monitoring, digital-forensics and KYC/CDD/AML platforms.
• Data-protection requirements, forensic standards, operational security and malware risks.

Job-specific Skills

• Strong investigative, analytical and problem-solving capability.
• Ability to translate technical findings into clear regulatory conclusions and recommendations.
• Excellent report-writing, communication and stakeholder-management skills.
• Sound judgement concerning attribution, evidentiary limitations and investigative confidence.
• Strong attention to detail, integrity, discretion and confidentiality.
• Ability to work independently and collaboratively across technical, legal and regulatory functions.
• Willingness to work flexible hours and travel when required.

Competencies

• Investigative judgement and regulatory awareness
• Technical and forensic expertise
• Analytical thinking and problem-solving
• Evidence management and attention to detail
• Relationship building and stakeholder management
• Leadership, adaptability and accountability
• Clear communication and report writing

About Us

The General Commercial Gaming Regulatory Authority (GCGRA) is the federal executive agency responsible for regulating and overseeing commercial gaming in the United Arab Emirates. We aim to drive sustainable growth by cultivating world-class commercial gaming operations and implementing efficient regulation, grounded in the principles of integrity, innovation, and responsible practices.

Established by Federal Law by Decree and headquartered in Abu Dhabi, the GCGRA is the executive authority that holds exclusive jurisdiction to regulate, license, and supervise all commercial gaming activities and facilities in the UAE.