There is a large hackers convention and competition in town. It is suggested that you do not use any public WIFI in the airport and tourist areas. RFID protected wallets are also suggested. Avoid ATMs at major hotels as well.

If you must use it, make sure you change your financial institution passwords as soon are you can get on a wired/secured network and while here, using a VPN is highly recommended.

defcon and blackhat?

Yes.

Blackhat is from July 30th to August 4th

Defcon is from August 4th to August 7th

Blackhat is more corporate/business/info sec industry related

Defcon is more grassroots "hacker" related

Goodluck!

Russian hackers won't be there though, Trump's keeping them too busy

Cool. Maybe when these guys are all in the venue we can get every decent human being out, lock the doors, and gas them all. The world will be a much better place afterward.

I work in internet advertising and I can concur with this post. Thank you for details everyone. I asked some contacts in the industry about this and this is what one told me:

Dammit, why does the Purge have to be only fiction??

Thanks for the heads up. I guess I'll take a little more cash than usual this trip to hopefully avoid the ATM.

If you don't connect to the casinos' wifi, what other ways can they get you?

If I don't take any CC or ATM cards and stick to only cash, what else do I need to worry about?

I'm asking because there are probably ways to get hacked that I don't even know.

If you do as stated and also turn off bluetooth you have nothing that they can lift. You will be fine. Make sure you don't lose or let your phone out of your sight.

Wait. It's only fiction!?

WELP GOBBOS GOTTA LAY LOW FOR A WHILE

Gobbo, I've been meaning to talk to you about that. You should find yourself a safehouse or a relative close by. Lay low for a while, because you're probably wanted for murder.

Seriously, do these conventions happen every year around this time?

yes they are every summer

Unfortunately if you're traveling and going to stay in a hotel, you have to bring at least 1 CC. I really hated that the CC companies put RF chips into every card whether we want them or not, because they think we're too lazy to swipe.

RFID blocking wallets are available. Mine arrives from amazon tomorrow.

I don't have time to go find something like that before this weekend. The intarweb says I can use good ole aluminium foil.

The other thing to worry about is hacking your room door. So I can't leave anything worthwhile in my room.

If anyone is a local, 99 cent stores everywhere sell these wallets. They're usually in the cashier's lane.

Will the 99 cent wallet actually block signal stealing?

Yes. They're advertised to on the packaging. They look like tiny little briefcases with a hard extrior. Kind of lame looking, but if you must...... it's a good deal

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For the record, the vast majority of those in attendance are the "good guys" whose goal is to stay on top of the latest threats and collaborate. You'd be surprised at how many law enforcement, military, and corporate security professionals attend. It's a part of the whole "know your enemy" type thinking.

Sure, if you gassed them all, you would take out some good-for-nothing identity thiefs (and worse). But you would also be taking out a large number of people that keep you safe. Banks accounts, company networks, home networks, infrastructure networks, internet accounts, national security; These are all secured by people that need to have the same skills as hackers.

While I don't disagree that most of the people in this field have good intentions, cyber-security is always going to be a passive, reactive industry. Except in very rare cases, all patches, updates and attempts to plug holes are only noticed after these vulnerabilities have already been exploited. There are very few times where the good guys notice something before the bad guys.

Incorrect. The majority of vulnerabilities published today are pre-exploit (at least malicious exploit). There are a hoard of professionals out there who disclose "proof of concept" code for the sole purpose of system hardening (read, it's their job). It all comes down to motivation and incentive. Jobs in the industry are growing, along with bug bounty programs which keep people from doing bad things with their skill. Even the Pentagon opened a "Hack the Pentagon" program this year. The rising number of penetration tests and jobs in the field are by definition, active, as opposed to passive.

My point is easily summarized by a quote from an excellent article written by Wired.

"One thing Popov had always known about Eastern European hackers: All they really wanted was a job."

(https://www.wired.com/2016/05/maksym-igor-popov-fbi/)

Okay, if they have a legit security job, they can live. The rest need to die. I hear Sarin gas results in a very painful death. Probably not real easy to get hold of though.

Was talking with a security guy here for the convention. He said no smart phone is safe, even with wifi and Bluetooth off. There will be folks here with cell tower emulators in their backpacks picking off your info. He suggested a dumb burner. You can forward your calls to it.