Over the past year or so, there has been an increased focus on information sharing in the field of cybersecurity in order to raise awareness and knowledge of the latest threats. Security conferences and events provide the ideal opportunity to learn from expert speakers and share experiences with peers. Here is a round up of some of the most interesting gatherings on the docket for 2016.
InterConnect Leads the Way
February’s InterConnect 2016 is billed as “The Premier Cloud and Mobile Conference.” Organized by IBM, it will take place in Las Vegas and feature both business content and in-depth technical sessions. In total, there are more than 2,000 sessions. InterConnect, which also features a large expo, is visited by some 24,000 attendees.
Also beginning in late February is the annual RSA Conference in San Francisco, one of the best-known and best-attended security conferences and expos worldwide. The theme of this year’s event is “Connect to Protect,” focusing on how knowledge sharing and collaboration can help to develop new concepts to better protect the digital world. There is also an RSA Conference Asia-Pacific and Japan being held in Singapore in July.
Four More Conferences to Watch
InfoSec World will take place in Florida in April, featuring seven conference tracks as well as a CISO Leadership Summit, IT Audit Management Summit and Risk Management Summit. It features speakers from both technology vendors and enterprises, with the aim to bridge the gap between security and business.
The premier security event for Europe is Infosecurity Europe 2016, which takes place in London this June. This event is best known for its exhibition, although there is a conference running parallel. It is always extremely well-attended and is the top draw of all the security conferences held in Europe. There are also some local events, but nothing to rival the main London show.
Black Hat USA returns to Las Vegas at the end of July. Originally intended for those of a more technical bent, Black Hat has now become mainstream and features a well-attended expo. There are also Black Hat events in Singapore in March and in London in November.
Immediately after Black Hat USA is DEF CON 24, which also takes place in Las Vegas. DEF CON is known as being one of the largest hacker conventions in the world. It is attended by all manner of security professionals and researchers — as well as federal employees.
Other Security Conferences
Along with these major security conferences, there are localized events that are extremely popular. These include information security training sessions held worldwide by the SANS Institute. The organization also hosts larger events such as SANS 2016 in Florida in March and June’s SANSFIRE 2016 in Washington, D.C.
Other security conferences of note around the world are the BSides events. Free to attend because they are financed by sponsorship, BSides is often positioned as smaller conferences that focus on networking and collaboration. Breakout discussions and audience participation are encouraged.
These security conferences provide ample opportunities for security practitioners to learn and network throughout the year. With cyberattacks and technologies changing so rapidly, this array of major conferences and events will help ensure that anyone interested is able to keep pace with the latest trends.
Senior Analyst, Bloor Research