It's time. Time for tinkerers, security researchers, hackers, and fellow nerds to gather together in signature black hoodies and utilikilts to beat the heat in Las Vegas for the summer security conferences: BSidesLV, Black Hat USA, and DEF CON.
EFF's lawyers, activists, and technologists are excited, as always, to support this community of folks that push computer security forward. If you're attending the conference and have any legal concerns about an upcoming talk or sensitive infosec research—during the Las Vegas conferences or anytime—don't hesitate to reach out to info@eff.org where our intake team is ready to assist! Share a brief summary of the issue, and we'll do our best to connect you with the right resources. You can also learn more about our work supporting technologists on our Coders' Rights Project page.
Be sure to swing by the expo areas at all three conferences to say hello to your friendly neighborhood EFF staffers! You'll probably spot us roaming the conference halls, but we'd love for you to stop by our booths to catch up on our latest work, get on our action alerts, and become an EFF member! For the whole week, we'll have our limited-edition DEF CON 34 t-shirt on hand. We're excited to see them—and other EFF gear—take over each conference!
EFF Staff Presentations
Privacy's Defenders: How Hackers Helped and Can Do So Again
Hackers have a long history standing up for justice and that history has a lot to teach and inspire the hackers of today as we face a world with 360-degree surveillance that is increasingly marshaled against us by both companies and governments. My talk will tell background and stories from my book, Privacy's Defender, that tells the story of my 30 years working with EFF to try to protect security and privacy in the digital age. Cards on the table: I'm trying to recruit you to join in the fight.
WHERE: Florentine F | BSides Las Vegas
WHEN: Monday, August 3 @ 11:00
WHO: Cindy Cohn - Former EFF Executive Director
Ask EFF at BSidesLV
Panelists from the EFF Staff will give brief updates on key topics in their expertise before turning it over to BSides attendees to ask their burning questions about policy, advocacy and making the future of tech brighter. It's a dynamic session fostering engaging discussions on digital rights featuring an EFF staff attorney, activist, and public interest technologist.
WHERE: Florentine F | BSides Las Vegas
WHEN: Tuesday, August 4 @ 14:00
WHO: EFF's Rory Mir, Kenyatta Thomas, Alexis Hancock, Haley Pederson, and Cindy Cohn
What Election Security Researchers Need to Know about Section 1201 of the Digital Millennium Copyright Act
WHERE: Voting Village | DEF CON
WHEN: Friday, August 7, 10:30-11:00
WHO: EFF Staff Attorney Tori Noble
Privacy's Defender: How Hackers Protected the Internet Before and Can Do It Again
EFF's Outgoing Executive Director Cindy Cohn' presents her first-person stories from her recently published book, Privacy's Defender, that take you Inside the privacy battles that have shaped today's Internet. It includes the hackers who helped free up encryption technology from US governmental control, allowing us to have the still imperfect privacy and security we now have online, and the battles to stop the mass NSA spying and eternal gag orders that arose from the governments formerly secret mass spying programs in the aftermath of the 9/11 attacks. She then draws from that long career of legal activism to the fights of today and tomorrow, featuring the role that hackers can play in helping to bring about a better, more just future.
WHERE: Creator Stage 1 | DEF CON
WHEN: Friday, August 7, 15:00-16:30
WHO: Former EFF Executive Director, Cindy Cohn
Why Mandatory Age Verification Keeps Us All Less Safe
WHERE: Creator Stage 7 | DEF CON
WHEN: Saturday, August 8, 13:30-14:30
WHO: EFF Director of Engineering Alexis Hancock & EFF Social Media and Video Manager Kenyatta Thomas
ESP32 As A Counter-Surveillance Platform
Privacy should be accessible to all. Historically, counter-surveillance tools have been expensive, complex, and inaccessible to most individuals, often limited to well-funded researchers and costly hardware configurations. The ESP32 offers a transformative alternative. This presentation will demonstrate how an affordable microcontroller has become the foundation for a growing suite of open-source, user-friendly anti-surveillance tools. We will discuss the technical features that make the ESP32 a compelling choice for these applications, including passive 802.11 and Bluetooth monitoring, OUI-based device fingerprinting, and robust cryptographic capabilities. Applications include detecting police body cameras in operational environments, mapping Flock Safety automatic license plate recognition (ALPR) infrastructure, identifying unauthorized drones, detecting radio frequency jamming across 2.4GHz, 5GHz, and cellular bands, and tracking autonomous robots operating with known-vulnerable firmware. These tools are cost-effective and freely available. We will also consider future developments in accessible counter-surveillance hardware, such as the ESP32-S5 with 5GHz support, GPS, displays, haptics, etc. Advancing anti-surveillance culture requires designing devices that individuals are motivated to use and carry.
WHERE: Main Track 1 | DEF CON
WHEN: Sunday, August 9, 10:00-11:00
WHO: EFF Senior Staff Technologist Cooper Quintin
Tactical Advocacy: Panel & Peer Sessions with EFF
WHERE: Policy Village | DEF CON
WHEN: Sunday, August 9, 12:30-14:00
WHO: EFF's Thorin Klosowski, Cooper Quintin, Alexis Hancock, Tori Noble, Rory Mir & Cindy Cohn
EFF Contests at DEF CON 34
EFF Benefit Poker Tournament
We’re going all in on internet freedom. Take a break from hacking the Gibson to face off with your competition at the tables—and benefit EFF! Your buy-in is paired with a donation to support EFF’s mission to protect online privacy and free expression for all. Join us on Friday, August 7 at 12:00 at theHorseshoe Poker Room. Play for glory. Play for money. Play for the future of the web.
WHERE: Horseshoe Poker Room, 3645 S Las Vegas Blvd, Las Vegas, NV 89109
WHEN: Friday, August 7, 12:00-15:00
Beard and Mustache Contest
Yes, it's exactly what it sounds like. Join EFF at the intersection of facial hair and hacker culture. Spectate, heckle, or compete in any of four categories: Full beard, Partial Beard, Moustache Only, or Freestyle (anything goes so create your own facial apparatus!). Prizes! Donations to EFF! Beard oil!
WHERE: Contest Stage (near the entrance to Hall 1)
WHEN: Friday, August 7, 13:00-14:00
Tech Trivia Contest
Join us for some tech trivia on Saturday, August 8! EFF's privacy and security experts have crafted a new trivia challenge for DEF CON 34! Compete as a team in our no-holds-barred showdown to prove mastery over the obscure facts of digital security, online rights, and internet culture. The First Place team wins a set of custom Cybertiger Champion Badges and EFF swag. Second and third place teams will also win Badges and EFF gear. Invite your friends OR show up and make new friends! Did someone say BRIBES? The world is unfair! You too could influence the judges to add a point or two to your team's tally. Overall Bribe winner also wins a custom badge!
WHERE: Contest Stage (near the entrance to Hall 1)
WHEN: Saturday, August 8, 17:00-20:00
Privacy's Defender Book Signing with Cindy Cohn
Grab a copy of former EFF Executive Director Cindy Cohn's new book, Privacy's Defender—and get it signed—while at DEF CON 34!
WHERE: Exhibit Hall West 4 (Book Signings)
WHEN: Saturday, August 8, 11:00-12:00 AND 13:00-14:00
Join the Cause!
Come find our table at BSidesLV (Middle Ground), Black Hat USA (back of the Business Hall), and DEF CON (Vendor Hall) to learn more about the latest in online rights, get on our action alert list, or donate to become an EFF member. We'll also have our limited-edition DEF CON 34 shirts available starting Monday at BSidesLV! These shirts have a puzzle incorporated into the design. Snag one online for yourself starting on Tuesday, August 4 if you're not in Vegas!
Support Security & Digital Innovation
Facts Only
* Electronic Frontier Foundation (EFF) will have a presence at BSidesLV, Black Hat USA, and DEF CON in Las Vegas.
* Cindy Cohn, former EFF Executive Director, is presenting "Privacy's Defenders" at BSidesLV on August 3 at 11:00 and at DEF CON on August 7 from 15:00-16:30.
* An "Ask EFF" panel occurs Tuesday, August 4 at 14:00 at BSidesLV featuring Rory Mir, Kenyatta Thomas, Alexis Hancock, Haley Pederson, and Cindy Cohn.
* Tori Noble is presenting on Section 1201 of the DMCA at the DEF CON Voting Village on August 7 from 10:30-11:00.
* Alexis Hancock and Kenyatta Thomas are presenting on mandatory age verification at DEF CON on August 8 from 13:30-14:30.
* Cooper Quintin is presenting on ESP32 counter-surveillance at DEF CON on August 9 from 10:00-11:00.
* A "Tactical Advocacy" session occurs August 9 at DEF CON from 12:30-14:00.
* An EFF Benefit Poker Tournament takes place August 7 from 12:00-15:00 at the Horseshoe Poker Room.
* A Beard and Mustache Contest occurs August 7 from 13:00-14:00 at the DEF CON Contest Stage.
* A Tech Trivia Contest takes place August 8 from 17:00-20:00 at the DEF CON Contest Stage.
* Cindy Cohn's book signing occurs August 8 at Exhibit Hall West 4 from 11:00-12:00 and 13:00-14:00.
* EFF will maintain booths at BSidesLV (Middle Ground), Black Hat USA (Business Hall), and DEF CON (Vendor Hall).
Executive Summary
The Electronic Frontier Foundation (EFF) is coordinating a comprehensive presence across three major Las Vegas security conferences: BSidesLV, Black Hat USA, and DEF CON. Their engagement strategy combines legal support, educational presentations, and community-building events. The programming focuses on the intersection of hacking and digital rights, specifically addressing surveillance, the DMCA, age verification laws, and the use of affordable hardware like the ESP32 for counter-surveillance.
Beyond formal talks, the organization is utilizing "gamified" fundraising and networking, such as a poker tournament, trivia, and a facial hair contest, to recruit members and raise funds. They are also promoting a new book by former Executive Director Cindy Cohn, which frames the history of privacy battles as a precursor to current digital rights struggles. Throughout the events, the EFF offers direct legal intake for researchers and speakers facing sensitive infosec concerns, positioning itself as a bridge between the technical community and the legal system.
Full Take
SKEPTICAL MODE:
The strongest version of this narrative is that the EFF serves as a critical civil liberties infrastructure, providing a necessary legal safety net for security researchers whose work often skirts the edge of legality. By embedding themselves in the "hacker" culture through utilikilts, trivia, and poker, they translate complex legal advocacy into a relatable community identity.
The narrative relies on a "call to arms" framing, casting digital privacy as a battlefield where hackers are the frontline defenders. While the tone is celebratory, it assumes a binary where "companies and governments" are the primary antagonists and "hackers" are the defenders of justice. This framing simplifies the complex ecosystem of cybersecurity, where state actors and corporate entities often collaborate on security standards that could be viewed as either protective or oppressive depending on the lens.
Root cause: This reflects the "Hacker Ethic" paradigm—the belief that information should be free and that technical expertise carries a moral obligation to challenge authority. It echoes the 1990s "Cypherpunk" movement, attempting to mobilize a new generation of technologists to view their skills as political tools.
Implications: This promotes agency by democratizing counter-surveillance tools (e.g., ESP32), shifting power from well-funded institutions to individuals. However, it also risks narrowing the definition of "security" to a conflict between the individual and the state, potentially overlooking the nuanced regulatory needs of a global internet.
Patterns detected: none
Bridge Questions:
1. If the tools for counter-surveillance become ubiquitous, how does the state's definition of "suspicious activity" evolve?
2. Does the alignment of legal advocacy with a specific subculture (hackers) limit its effectiveness in reaching the general public who are also subject to 360-degree surveillance?
Counterstrike Scan: A bad actor pushing this narrative would use it to radicalize technical professionals by framing all government security measures as inherent oppression to justify illegal intrusions. This content does not match that pattern; it focuses on legal advocacy, public presentations, and documented copyright law.