DEF CON has started, 18 and just barely legal.

DEF CON 18, the barely legal edition is in full swing and promises to be busier and crazier than ever. The event is cash only at the door with no reservations making the event very inviting to individuals that enjoy privacy and no having their credit card hijacked.  After all this event is one of the longest running and largest  hacking conferences in underground circles. Many professionals also attend, but may experience a culture shock as DEF CON is not your typical suit & tie IT conference. This year proves to be one of the most expansive years in DEF CON’s 18 year history. Events at the con range from beverage cooling contraption contest to lock picking challenges, and everything in between.

A major spectacle of the conference are the badges, or passes into the conference, which are actually small circuit boards containing programming and a display. This year the DEF CON badge includes a social aspect, allowing attendees to display various icons of individuals interests, such as a beer bottle, dice, or video game controller.  Many contests and challenges are hosted at the event including The Social Engineering CTF.  The goal of the event is to ‘gather’ information from a target company using almost any means necessary. There are certain restrictions, but given that this is a hackers conference, anything could happen. Check out some information about the conference below and be sure to check back with us for updates all weekend long.

DEF CON 18 Press Badge

List of this years speakers: http://www.defcon.org/html/defcon-18/dc-18-speakers.html

Events and Schedule: http://www.defcon.org/html/defcon-18/dc-18-schedule.html

List of tools released at DEF CON: http://www.defcon.org/html/links/dc-tools.html