A DEF CON postscript: Said the FBI agent to the taxi driver
I think one of the differences between Black Hat and DEF CON is that each have a different relationship to their heroes.
The first night of Black Hat parties – all fairly corporate, though relaxed affairs with hackers of all stripes – I found myself at a VIP party talking to one of the key cogs in Black Hat’s clockwork. This person told me they were absolutely, 100% convinced that there weren’t any real ‘black hats’ at Black Hat. Not anymore. It was all sales, marketing and salespeople.
I politely disagreed, and suggested they go to different parties.
Black Hat is hacking scrubbed of its sense of wonder. And sadly, it mirrors the times we’re in.
Michael Sauers is the Director of Logan Library in Logan, UT. Prior to this he was one of the founding staff and Technology Manager for Do Space in Omaha, NE. After earning his MLS in 1995 from the University at Albany's School of Information Science and Policy Michael spent his first 20 years as a librarian training other librarians in technology along with time as a public library trustee, a bookstore manager for a library friends group, a reference librarian, a technology consultant, and a bookseller. He has written dozens of articles for various journals and magazines and has published 14 books ranging from library technology, blogging, Web design, and an index to a popular horror magazine. In his spare time, he blogs at TravelinLibrarian.info, runs The Collector's Guide to Dean Koontz website at CollectingKoontz.com, takes many, many photos, and typically reads more than 100 books a year.
Unless otherwise stated, all opinions are my own and are not to be considered those of the City of Logan, UT.
View all posts by Michael Sauers
I think one of the differences between Black Hat and DEF CON is that each have a different relationship to their heroes.
