I thought I would do a thread on the ins and outs of Defcon. When I went there I didn't quite know what to expect but I was excited. I have to laugh the main question that friends and family ask are "Aren't you worried that you will no be on some FBI watch list for attending?" Ok this question is funny NO I'm not worried at all. Here is the thing when you go to defcon there is NO registration. The cost this year was $140. and it was CASH only. There is no preregistering its a first come first go basis. Besides face it we all have FBI files, some are just a more intresting read.

So here are some tips if you would like to attend DEFCON to make the most out of it...

• Join their forum site so you can stay up to date with the information on Defcon. Its also a great idea to fan them on Facebook.
• As soon as they post what hotel they are at (and they get discounted rates) book a room. Even if your not 100% sure you can always cancel the reservation but rooms go fast. Trust me you want to stay in the heart of the fun. The past few years it has been at the Rivera (all of the really nice hotels have booted Defcon ). I paid $99. a night this year so its reasonable.
• They do not pre-sell the badges online its a first come first serve. The convention was Friday - Sunday but the badges went on sale on Thursday at 8am. They DO run out of badges and when they do you get a paper one, its ugly trust me you want the real digital badge. This year they ran out of badges by Thur. at 2pm so get there early and get in line. The sale starts at 8am I was in line at 7am and there was probably 1500 people ahead of me (the lines move fast). Have cash as they do not take credit cards, cash only! This years badges were $140.00 cash and there was probably 8k in attendance.
• Bring lots of cash, all ATM's are shut down and alot of places do not take credit cards when Defcon is in town. One year a ATM machine was a fake so they just lock them all down. When I ran low on cash I had to travel some distance to get cash out safely.
• As soon as the schedule is posted look it over and plan on what you would like to attend. Take special note to the parties at night time so that way if you do want to go out on the town you do not book tickets the same night as the parties.
• Do you have to get "dressed up"? HELL NO! Mind you that this is not some ritzy party, the parties are loud and wild and oh so much fun. I would say a good portion of the attendees sport mohawks and brightly dyed hair. Its like one huge rave party. It the party is like a BBQ (yes they have those) get there early if you want to eat, they run out of food.
• You do not have to go to meetings all day long. There are tons to do. All day long in other rooms they run contests and games. You don't want to miss the games and contests, they are a blast. There is also a room full of vendors that are selling everything from lock picking devices, hardware, books and lots of apparel (bring cash). Some of the fun games and contest to attend are Hackers Jeopardy, Social Engineering contest, scavengers hunt, spot the fed, the confession booth just to name a few.
• Defcon swag (merchandise). If your looking to buy some t-shirts and items then get them early as they sell out. By the second day generally the official t-shirts are gone. You can score some cool defcon shirts from the vendors (and cheaper) so check them out too...cash only!
• Do you have to be 21 or older to attend? No there is no age limit to attend defcon but I would not bring a small child. You will find the folks at defcon super friendly but the language can be strong. Most parties there is no age limit however some are 21 and over (they have bouncers). If you want to drink they will ask you for ID's.

Here are some pictures I took during Defcon. I did not take a ton of them because not everyone wants their picture taken there, you have to be careful.

These are pictures I took:

The Hotel:

This years badge:

The meetings:

That is Max Kelly who was head of security for Facebook for the last 5 years (he quit 3 weeks ago). He was a former FBI computer security specialist. He was a speaker at Defcon.

Some of the game and contest rooms:


Pictures from the vending area:

Here are some more pics by VentureBeat

So any questions ask away and I will do my best to answer. I had a blast at Defcon and plan to attend again next year!