DIFC Appoints Roberta Calarese as Commissioner of Data Protection and Security Registrar

Dubai, 22 September 2011: The Dubai International Financial Centre (DIFC), the financial and business gateway between the Middle East, Africa and South Asia region (MEASA) and the world, today announced the appointment of Roberta Calarese as Commissioner of Data Protection as well as Security Registrar.

Roberta has a long and vast experience in DIFC, having joined the Dubai Financial Services Authority (DFSA) in 2002 as Director of Policy and Legal Services. In February 2011, Roberta was promoted to the Chief Legal Officer of the DIFC Authority. In her long standing career with DIFC, Roberta has been instrumental in establishing the legal and regulatory framework of the Centre.

In her new role Roberta will be responsible for promoting good practices in data protection as well as developing a harmonised approach to data protection throughout DIFC.

Roberta’s appointment as the Commissioner of Data Protection comes pursuant to Article 21(1) of the DIFC Data Protection Law No.1 of 2007, and is effective from 8 August 2011. While her appointment as Security Registrar comes pursuant to Article 7 of the Law of Security, DIFC Law No. 8 of 2005, and is effective from 12 September 2011.