The Great Hammerhead occurs throughout UAE inshore and offshore waters, and is unlikely to be abundant wherever it occurs. Capture of this species is totally banned in the UAE. It is particularly susceptible to capture in gill net and longline fisheries and is highly valued for its fins. It suffers very high bycatch mortality, which causes it to be susceptible to population decline. While there is limited information available on this species in the region, its large size, valuable fins, and intensive fisheries mean that, like many other large sharks, it has undergone significant declines. It is apparently highly migratory, and has slow life history characteristics including low fecundity and a low annual rate of population increase. Considering this, the species has a low capacity to recover from even moderate levels of exploitation. It is especially susceptible to exploitation (target and bycatch) in many largely unregulated gill net, longline and trawl fisheries that operate within its range outside and surrounding UAE waters. Some management measures are now in place in the Arabian Sea region, although domestic fisheries are likely to continue. Though data specifically from the UAE are not available, individuals in the UAE are a component of a larger, interconnected and migratory population that occurs broadly in the north-western Indian Ocean. It is inferred that declines reported in the Arabian Sea region are representative of its status in the UAE. Based on recorded levels of exploitation, it is suspected to have declined by at least 50% over the past three generation lengths, or about 75 years. It is listed as Endangered A2d.