Ethical Hacking News
Join over 10,000 security professionals at one of three conferences descending upon Sin City – BSides Las Vegas, Black Hat, and DEF CON. With presentations on everything from finding solutions to old security challenges to exploring AI-powered hacking techniques, these events promise to be an exhilarating experience for anyone interested in staying ahead of the curve.
B-Sides Las Vegas is a conference that takes place at the Tuscany Hotel from Monday to Wednesday, featuring over 200 security conventions worldwide. The event's "password track" is a highlight of the schedule and includes talks on solving computing's oldest security challenges, like passwords. A talk by Stacey Schreft, former US Treasury Department deputy director for research and analysis, will discuss how security problems could trigger the next major financial crisis. Black Hat takes place at Mandalay Bay from August 6 to 7, focusing on AI as a key area of interest with talks on vulnerabilities and exploits. DEF CON is an offbeat event with no registration fees, held at the Las Vegas Convention Center and featuring varied talks on topics like phishing emails and Bug Bounty contests.
This year, the world of cybersecurity is converging on a single destination like never before – the city of lights, entertainment, and excess that is Las Vegas. The granddaddy of them all, the annual summer camp for security professionals has become a mecca for anyone interested in protecting the digital world from its many threats.
At the epicenter of this event is BSides Las Vegas, an annual conference that started as a humble alternative to the more commercialized Black Hat convention. While it still maintains some of its edginess and inclusiveness, it's now one of the largest events of its kind, boasting over 200 security conventions held worldwide every year. This year's event is no exception, taking place at the Tuscany Hotel from Monday to Wednesday. The schedule is packed with presentations on everything from finding solutions to some of computing's oldest security challenges – such as passwords – to more offbeat topics like building hacking hardware and commercial licensing problems in the industry.
The highlight of BSides' schedule is its "password track," which takes up an entire day, Monday at 17:00 Pacific Time. One presentation that's sure to grab your attention is a talk by Stacey Schreft, former deputy director for research and analysis at the US Treasury Department's Office of Financial Research. She will be discussing how security problems could trigger the next major financial crisis. Her warning may be timely, given the increasingly digitized nature of our lives.
While BSides is certainly an important event in the security calendar, it's not the only one happening this week in Sin City. Black Hat – the biggie – takes place at Mandalay Bay from August 6 to 7, with training sessions starting on August 2. The conference features a range of talks showcasing new research and focusing heavily on AI as a particular area of interest.
One session is scheduled to discuss ways to fool AIs into breaking safety guardrails or leaking information. This isn't a cheerleading event for AI development – rather, it's an honest look at its potential vulnerabilities. Another talk will explore an Apple zero-day vulnerability that could potentially be exploited by hackers. As with anything Black Hat, this isn't going to be an easy conference to attend; the talks require registration and payment.
The Expo Business Hall is also a great place for networking. However, attendees are warned not to venture into it on Wednesday from 16:00 to 17:00 Pacific Time – that's when things turn into what can only be described as a free-for-all of people swarming booths picking up souvenirs. But don't worry; if you're there, your security is also being looked after in another way. The conference's network operations center (NOC) has volunteers scanning the networks for suspicious activity using state-of-the-art hardware. They'll even have a word with you privately about fixing any security issues or malware on your system.
Last but not least, we have DEF CON, located at the Las Vegas Convention Center. This is perhaps the most offbeat of the three events – and in that sense, it's also one of the most fascinating. Unlike Black Hat, which is very commercialized and requires registration, DEF CON has no registration fees whatsoever; all it asks for is that attendees bring their own gear.
The talks at DEF CON are just as varied as those at BSides or Black Hat. One session will focus on how to detect phishing emails, while another explores the world of Bug Bounty – essentially a contest where security researchers compete to identify vulnerabilities in software and services.
One thing stands out about all three conferences: their speakers are not afraid to get up close and personal with topics that could easily be avoided. Be it exploring AI-powered hacking techniques or discussing cybersecurity challenges that trigger the next big financial crisis, these events promise to deliver nothing short of an exhilarating experience for anyone looking to stay ahead of the curve in a rapidly evolving world.
Related Information:
https://www.ethicalhackingnews.com/articles/The-Worlds-Largest-Security-Gathering-BSides-Las-Vegas-Black-Hat-and-DEF-CON-Descend-upon-Sin-City-ehn.shtml
https://go.theregister.com/feed/www.theregister.com/2025/08/05/bsides_blackhat_defcon_preview/
Published: Tue Aug 5 07:30:13 2025 by llama3.2 3B Q4_K_M
