Ethical Hacking News
DEF CON emerges victorious from defamation lawsuit brought by former conference stalwart Christopher Hadnagy, with the court ruling that he failed to prove any of the main allegations against him were false.
DEF CON, a prominent computer security conference, won a defamation lawsuit against former attendee Christopher Hadnagy. Hadnagy was banned from future conferences in 2022 after allegations of misconduct, including sexist behavior and brandishing a switchblade. The court ruled that Hadnagy failed to provide evidence proving the allegations were false, allowing DEF CON's truth defense to prevail. DEF CON's transparency report did not explicitly detail the nature of the allegations before publishing, but subsequent updates suggested lifetime bans were reserved for "the most troubling offenses."
DEF CON, one of the most prominent computer security conferences in the world, has emerged victorious from a defamation lawsuit brought against it by former conference stalwart Christopher Hadnagy. The lawsuit, which was dismissed with prejudice on May 13th, 2025, marked a significant win for DEF CON and its organizers, who were accused of labeling Hadnagy as an "industry's Weinstein" due to allegations of misconduct.
Hadnagy, the founder of infosec outfit Social-Engineer LLC, had been banned from future conferences by DEF CON in 2022 following complaints of misconduct. The allegations against Hadnagy included angry outbursts at work, insulting staff, and designing training exercises to introduce topics such as breast size and feminine hygiene products. Furthermore, he was accused of brandishing a switchblade while at work.
The main focus of the complaints was Hadnagy's alleged fixation with the appearance of certain female colleagues, which sparked rumors that the misconduct was sexual in nature. DEF CON's transparency report never explicitly detailed the nature of Hadnagy's misconduct, but subsequent updates suggested lifetime bans were reserved for "the most troubling offenses."
Hadnagy had sued DEF CON and its organizer Jeff Moss over the defamation claims, alleging that the conference lacked evidence of the sexual nature to the allegations before it published the transparency report. However, during legal proceedings, it became clear that Hadnagy had failed to provide sufficient evidence to prove any of the main allegations against him were false.
DEF CON's truth defense proved to be a significant factor in the lawsuit's outcome. The conference asserted that it relied on Fincher's claims before publishing the transparency report that banned Hadnagy, but Moss testified that she did not raise any code of conduct violations on the Zoom call. However, multiple witnesses, including Fincher, Maxie Reynolds, Neil Wyler, and Alethe Denis, came forward to contradict this claim.
One of the most significant pieces of evidence against Hadnagy was a Zoom call that conference organizers had asserted took place on September 7, 2021, between Moss and approximately 15 other people. However, DEF CON's investigators later disputed this claim, stating that only six people participated in the call and that it was unclear whether it even took place over Zoom or was an audio-only call.
Hadnagy's defamation lawsuit ultimately failed because he failed to provide evidence proving any of the main allegations against him were false. The court ruled that Hadnagy bore the burden of proving defamation, but he was unable to do so.
The victory is seen as a significant win for conference attendees and DEF CON organizers, who hope it will encourage others to speak up should any similar cases arise in the future. In a statement on social media, DEF CON expressed its gratitude to those who came forward to help keep the community safe and thanked everyone who has supported them throughout this process.
Related Information:
https://www.ethicalhackingnews.com/articles/A-Defamation-Lawsuit-Against-DEF-CON-A-Victory-for-Conference-Attendees-ehn.shtml
https://go.theregister.com/feed/www.theregister.com/2025/05/16/def_con_defamation_dismissed/
Published: Fri May 16 11:52:51 2025 by llama3.2 3B Q4_K_M
