A Girl’s Guide to Hacker Summer Camp

Learn and build all the things.

Hacker Summer Camp is a week-long event in Vegas comprised of various conferences like BsidesLV, Black Hat, Diana Initiative, etc.

I’ve been going to Hacker Summer Camp off and on since 2014. When I, a girl with no infosec background, made the crazy decision to go to a hacker convention by myself. I read up online on how best to prepare and went to the Rio. That weekend I bought my first badge kit, learned how to solder in the Hardware Hacking Village, got my Ham Radio License, and learned how to pick locks in the Lockpicking Village.

Lockpicking Village Table — Most of these are available for people to try.

Do Your Recon

If you’ve never been to a tech conference or Vegas, I recommend googling everything you can prior to arrival. (If you’re on this blog post, you’re definitely headed in the right direction.)

There are multiple conference hotels. The rooms go on sale months before the event. I recommend trying to stay at one of the con hotels or at least on the Strip. It’ll save you a ton of time and Lyft costs. They also honestly have some of the best room rates if you get them early enough.

Badges are available online up to a month or two before the conference. (For now.) Getting your badge online keeps you from potentially having to bring cash in person to the event. …Or risk using your credit card at a hacker conference.

Check out Twitter for all the news on parties, the con’s main site and forums for schedule and workshop announcements, and Tindie’s site for new badge drops.

Also bonus points for potentially making your HOA upset.

Dress The Part

You can definitely get away with business casual at Black Hat, but it might not be a great choice elsewhere. Several of the conferences and events are more “hacker casual,” but feel free to express yourself however you want that’s legal. There’s no dress code.

It is advisable however to heed any Covid-19 protocols and be conscious of the fact that you’re (a) in the desert during summer and (b) the A/C in most of the casinos will be on full blast.

A lot of cool side events going on during the week like Women in Cyberjutsu’s Wicked 6.

Situational Awareness

I grew up in a sketchy city and lived in sketchy parts of town. If you’re flying solo be aware of your surroundings. This includes people. You’re at a hacker conference, and unfortunately, not everyone is going to be your friend.

Old standards about not going off with strangers, accepting drinks you didn’t pour yourself, and avoiding dimly lit places with few people around are all valid.

If someone at the conference is making you feel uncomfortable, look for a Conference Associate or talk to someone at Security. They’re there to help.

Anywhere else in Vegas, look for Cops or Casino Security.

I occasionally spend too much time making blinkie badges.

Villages/Demos over Talks

This may be an unpopular opinion, but I prefer to spend my time in the Villages or at Demos where things are fairly hands-on vs waiting in a queue to get into a talk that’s being recorded and will be on Youtube/a Website in a few days or months.

Many of the Villages at the various conferences have their own tracks with talks as well and a lot of those aren’t recorded (or allowed to be recorded). I’ve also learned a lot of skills, gotten cool swag, and met some awesome people from hanging out in Villages.

This thing is really hard to fit in one picture.

Hidden Con

There are tons of events and parties that aren’t going to be on a public list. The only way you’re getting an invite is by going to booths and talking to vendors, doing CTFs, and generally meeting and interacting with people or taking on skills challenges.

While that might not be your thing, it is something to consider. I’ve gotten to attend some amazing events with great food and entertainment just by having a conversation with someone on a crowded plane.

I like that our heroine sports lock-picking tools.

Last But Not Least…

Don’t get Hacked

There are tons of articles on all the crazy stuff that happens at Defcon and all the rumors that go with it. Some basics are: use cash if possible, turn off your cellphone (or other electronics) anywhere near the con footprint, privacy screens are always a good idea, don’t log into anything, definitely don’t use any flash drives you find, do use an RFID blocking card wallet, and avoid the ATMs.

The vendor room has some interesting displays.