DUBAI, United Arab Emirates (AP) — From suspected Iranian cyberattacks on Saudi Arabia to leaked emails causing consternation among nominally allied Arab nations, state-sponsored hacks have become an increasing worry among countries across the Persian Gulf.

Defending against such attacks has become a major industry in Dubai, as the city-state home to the world's tallest building and the long-haul airline Emirates increasingly bills itself as an interconnected "smart city" where robots now deliver wedding certificates.

They fear a massive attack on the scale of what Saudi Arabia suffered throug...