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> They even take pre-payment and I'm old enough to remember when DT would've NEVER even floated that idea What a bizarre complaint. Are we talking about the ab

by NavinF 3y ago

> They even take pre-payment and I'm old enough to remember when DT would've NEVER even floated that idea What a bizarre complaint. Are we talking about the ability to buy tickets online? Do people not know how to make online payments anonymously? FYI just about every long running convention sells early bird tickets before they've even secured the exhibits and speakers. Cashflow is critical for making anything happen IRL

zer8k 3y ago
I don't think you know what you're talking about. Defcon was quite literally the target of federal fishing expeditions. They were especially heavy when Defcon was often hosting some of the best hackers the planet had to offer. Long before the asinine term "offensive security researcher" was a thing. You operated entirely by handle (unless you were an idiot) and there was even a "spot the fed" competition. Famously, a journalist was ran out of the conference trying to film To Catch A Hacker (or something, the memory is fading). The cash-at-the-door was a safety mechanism to prevent such fishing expeditions. At Defcon you were always under attack. That is, until it became a corporate playground. Now it's a place where skids go to buy the newest pineapple and stuffy suits go to network with other "researchers". You really had to be there to understand. Woodstock For Hackers is a close approximation. For those of us that were there during it's hey-day seeing what it is today is like watching your favorite hero live long enough to become the villain. 15 years ago the idea of "responsible disclosure" would've been the punchline of a joke at a small Track 3 talk.
- NavinF 3y ago
  > cash-at-the-door was a safety mechanism to prevent such fishing expeditions You were at an in-person event, thinking that cash somehow kept you more anonymous than online payments? I think this is just a generational gap.
  - hiatus 3y ago
    It certainly creates a lot more work for authorities than simply gaining the attendee list.

by NavinF 3y ago

zer8k 3y ago

I don't think you know what you're talking about. Defcon was quite literally the target of federal fishing expeditions. They were especially heavy when Defcon was often hosting some of the best hackers the planet had to offer. Long before the asinine term "offensive security researcher" was a thing. You operated entirely by handle (unless you were an idiot) and there was even a "spot the fed" competition. Famously, a journalist was ran out of the conference trying to film To Catch A Hacker (or something, the memory is fading). The cash-at-the-door was a safety mechanism to prevent such fishing expeditions. At Defcon you were always under attack. That is, until it became a corporate playground. Now it's a place where skids go to buy the newest pineapple and stuffy suits go to network with other "researchers". You really had to be there to understand. Woodstock For Hackers is a close approximation. For those of us that were there during it's hey-day seeing what it is today is like watching your favorite hero live long enough to become the villain. 15 years ago the idea of "responsible disclosure" would've been the punchline of a joke at a small Track 3 talk.

NavinF 3y ago
> cash-at-the-door was a safety mechanism to prevent such fishing expeditions You were at an in-person event, thinking that cash somehow kept you more anonymous than online payments? I think this is just a generational gap.
- hiatus 3y ago
  It certainly creates a lot more work for authorities than simply gaining the attendee list.