EFF at the Las Vegas Security Conferences

It’s time for EFF’s annual journey to Las Vegas for the summer security conferences: BSidesLV, Black Hat USA, and DEF CON. Our lawyers, activists, and technologists are always excited to support this community of security researchers and tinkerers—the folks who push computer security forward (and somehow survive the Vegas heat in their signature black hoodies).  

As in past years, EFF attorneys will be on-site to assist speakers and attendees. If you have legal concerns about an upcoming talk or sensitive infosec research—during the Las Vegas conferences or anytime—don’t hesitate to reach out at info@eff.org. 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 in the halls, but we’d love for you to stop by our booths to catch up on our latest work, get on our action alerts list, or become an EFF member! For the whole week, we’ll have our limited-edition DEF CON 33 t-shirt on hand—I can’t wait to see them take over each conference! 

EFF Staff Presentations

Ask EFF at BSides Las Vegas At this interactive session, our panelists will share updates on critical digital rights issues and EFF's ongoing efforts to safeguard privacy, combat surveillance, and advocate for freedom of expression. WHEN: Tuesday, August 5, 15:00 WHERE: Skytalks at the Tuscany Suites Hotel & Casino

Recording PCAPs from Stingrays With a $20 Hotspot What if you could use Wireshark on the connection between your cellphone and the tower it's connected to? In this talk we present Rayhunter, a cell site simulator detector built on top of a cheap cellular hotspot.  WHEN: Friday, August 8, 13:30 WHERE: LVCC - L1 - EHW3 - Track 1

Rayhunter Build Clinic Come out and build EFF's Rayhunter! ($10 materials fee as an EFF donation) WHEN: Friday, August 8 at 14:30 WHERE: Hackers.Town Community Space Protect Your Privacy Online and on the Streets with EFF Tools The Electronic Frontier Foundation (EFF) has been protecting your rights to privacy, free expression, and security online for 35 years! One important way we push for these freedoms is through our free, open source tools. We’ll provide an overview of how these tools work, including Privacy Badger, Rayhunter, Certbot, and Surveillance-Self Defense, and how they can help keep you safe online and on the streets. WHEN: Friday, August 8 at 17:00 WHERE: Community Stage

Rayhunter Internals Rayhunter is an open source project from EFF to detect IMSI catchers. In this follow up to our main stage talk about the project we will take a deep dive into the internals of Rayhunter. We will talk about the architecture of the project, what we have gained by using Rust, porting to other devices, how to jailbreak new devices, the design of our detection heuristics, open source shenanigans, and how we analyze files sent to us. WHEN: Saturday, August 9, at 12:00 WHERE: Hackers.Town Community Space

Ask EFF at DEF CON 33 We're excited to answer your burning questions on pressing digital rights issues! Our expert panelists will offer brief updates on EFF's work defending your digital rights, before opening the floor for attendees to ask their questions. This dynamic conversation centers challenges DEF CON attendees actually face, and is an opportunity to connect on common causes. WHEN: Saturday, August 9, at 14:30 WHERE: LVCC - L1 - EHW3 - Track 4

EFF Benefit Poker Tournament at DEF CON 33

The EFF Benefit Poker Tournament is back for DEF CON 33! Your buy-in is paired with a donation to support EFF’s mission to protect online privacy and free expression for all. Join us at the Planet Hollywood Poker Room as a player or spectator. Play for glory. Play for money. Play for the future of the web.  WHEN: Friday, August 8, 2025 - 12:00-15:00 WHERE: Planet Hollywood Poker Room, 3667 Las Vegas Blvd South, Las Vegas, NV 89109

Beard and Moustache Contest at DEF CON 33

Yes, it's exactly what it sounds like. Join EFF at the int