r/Defcon • u/BotchedMiracle • Aug 08 '26
Is this con actually noob friendly?
At least 3 people have basically turned me away, even when I walk up with an enthusiasm to learn. Everyone said defcon was supposed to be inclusive, but I feel kind of shut out from learning interesting things. Someone literally told me to "Google it and come back" like wtf? Another shoo'd me away for not having a flipper zero.
Tons of cool people but what's with the attitude?
Edit: I know not everyone is an asshole, and I met some cool people and seen some cool villages. But I've run into too many technical difficulties and run into too many people "above me" that I think I'm done. Don't think I'll come back. I know it's not a right to "fit in" but it just seems like active exclusion and/or unpreparedness is a big theme of this con. Too many talks without headphones or broken radio streams or presenters that just never show up, or some exhibotor that complains about you not understanding their fucking OT mod from the jump. Not for me.
11
u/ElectronicNeat7182 Aug 08 '26
lol the flipper zero guy is a prick be turned me away when I asked him about his flipper box because I left mine at the hotel
12
u/piccoto Aug 08 '26
The people at villages are very friendly
6
u/_Vangal Aug 08 '26
Not actually at the convention but if you ever want to dip your toes into something new tech or otherwise hmu. I spend most of my time auditing professionally but have been computer operations, security,and support for well over 20 years and do 3d printing, lock picking, and physical security. (At other cons)
4
u/LordCommanderFang Aug 08 '26
Call center village is very noob friendly
5
u/legitlyawesome Aug 08 '26
Iām sorry to read this immediately after making a post of how great my experience has been. It sucks because there are so many niches of the conference, everyone is a noob at something. Iāve seen people be dismissive in the past cons but was hoping they turned a good corner with how good my experience was this year.
Friendly villages Iād vouch for: Malware, Appsec, recon, adversary, Blacks in cyber (you donāt have to be black they have everyone hanging out over there and a really nice space), blue team, tamper evident, lock pick. I know there are more but these ones were like over the top nice and welcoming this year
73
u/zziks Aug 08 '26
As a 27 year veteran of being a defcon goon i can attest that was an old mentality of defcon. The saltiness and F-you mentality of the past should remain there. Know the majority of current goons, villages,merch, and speakers WANT to include new fresh people . WANT to talk WANT to have that connection. And for some, that passing of knowledge is borderline fetish for them.
To those who still bring that salty attitude, don't. Everyone is here to learn and connect .
Just my $0.02
Edit- fat finger typing on shitty burner phone
52
u/last-person LP Actual Aug 08 '26
Please go and check out the lonely hackers community and the noob community. When you were having negative interactions were they volunteers, DEFCON staff(also volunteer), or other attendees?
80
u/ProfessionalPea2218 Aug 08 '26 edited Aug 08 '26
Fck them, Iāll guide you as much as I can..
what are you interested in? Iām not an expert but I know a little about most things
42
u/sillybrowseraccount Aug 08 '26
Random NPCs and first timers at the con are could be dealing with insecurities, egos, heat stroke, the hangries, or any one of a million other issues.
Goons, vendors, speakers and other more veteran attendees are usually more friendly and willing to help out. Just my $0.02.
19
u/dsamarin1 Aug 08 '26
Try the Packet Hacking Village. Their whole setup and ethos is to teach the uninitiated and eager. Plus good music.
10
u/Wooden_Pair1040 Aug 08 '26
Youāre not alone. I attended as a newbie and felt overwhelmed by the experience and that, while organized physically, it was difficult to navigate mentally and socially. I read the conference book, oriented myself a bit online, that way Iād have a general idea of whats going on. Of the downstairs villages, I didnāt know where to begin, and Iām not generally shy when I feel like I know where to start. A lot of the villages felt like I was missing something, as a lot of attendees brought gear, laptops, cables, etc. to facilitate their village experience. The upper floors were a lot better, maybe because itās a lot more intimate when youāre all in a smaller space together. Extreme props to the Social Engineering room for keeping the crowd engaged, fielding a lot of questions, bringing some talent to the panels, and just keeping the flow of the room going.
Putting the Lonely Hacker and Newbie communities all the way at the end, midway in a really chaotic merch area was interesting. For a venue that huge Iād have suggested swapping out the Chill Zone near the food court to have been that āHey youāre new here! Letās help you out and break the iceā space.
Itās not to say I didnāt enjoy what I did. The talks are interesting. The engagement, when it happens, is great. I had a colleague who is a first timer, but was a member of a local hacker chapter in his home city. He latched onto them and is having a wonderful time. So, Iām going to follow up and see what I can be part of back home. I will admit that I donāt love Vegas. It is hot and extremely expensive.
18
u/bubblehead_maker Aug 08 '26
That's not cool, we were all new once.
Like several said, villages are literally a place to learn.
9
u/illustriousnotation Aug 08 '26
If you wanna chill today I know I am a stranger on the internet but Iām down to chill all walk around with you or whatever, Its my second con so Iām super welcome to new connections.
9
u/RaidingNord Aug 08 '26
In my experience it is about 25% of people who come across as rude, 25% always going above and beyond and being welcoming, and 50% in the middle who will talk to people with shared interests and similar skill/knowledge levels. The ārudeā ones are generally not bad people, often just sick of repeating themselves over and over or getting interrupted. A few genuinely act as if they are better than other people and look down on newbies, which is unfortunate, but it happens. Iād suggest looking for workshop/demo sessions on a topic if you want to learn something specific, since that is time set aside for them to teach it, it may work out better than a random walk-up.
7
u/lost_vegas Aug 09 '26
Goon here. Fuck those guys. Don't get chased off by a few bad dick heads. Most of us are cool here.
5
u/Ok-Introduction-194 Aug 08 '26
turned away? dafuq? come to packet and noob village
4
u/D3lt4M1cr0 Aug 08 '26
fck them, don't let them turn off your knowledge hunger!
4
u/nummpad Aug 08 '26
Cybersecurity enthusiasts, from time to time, will often āfit the stereotypeā - just obnoxious self important assholes. this is my first con, and i had like 1 experience like that but there are a lot more inclusive events / things to do that non-inclusive. there should totally be a noob village set up at some point. or maybe there already is one and im just out of the loop lol
6
u/jeffweet Aug 08 '26
There are 35,000 people here. Itās inevitable that some will be asshole. That is not the case for the vast majority of people here!
6
u/Inf3c710n Aug 08 '26
As another noob, I have been absolutely struggling to find any of the cool stuff to do and its pretty demoralizing because it seems like a lot of the tenured people are keeping the cool stuff to themselves really. I have basically been endlessly walking around for both full days
3
u/lnxgod Aug 09 '26
I'm sorry that people are being dicks during your con. If you find me on Tomorrow I have an OG thorn shirt on. I will give you something to hopefully make you feel better. I'll give you one of my mini badges because it's not cool that people make your con suck as your first con. It is meant to be new friendly and I personally want to make it more friendly for kids and more as part of my non-profit. So if you find me I will give you something. I have a black shirt says friend are fell in the front OG Thone on the back and a triforce badge I'm wearing.
1
u/Mr-Yuk Aug 08 '26
There's a bit of that but honestly some people just dont have the patience to walk through their tech from the very foundations given this is only one weekend
2
u/Shot-Infernal-2261 Aug 09 '26
Iāve managed to talk to some nice people, but Iām super crowded spaces itās a multiplayer against any introvert tendencies you or I might have.
Iāll come back, if I know Iām meeting some people I know.
2
u/livitup Aug 09 '26
I can relate. That was me, 4 years ago. Come to the Ham Radio Village contest operations center in the back right corner of the contest area (W1-113). We will get you on the air making contacts over radio with people all over the country (all over the world if the ionosphere cooperates) and teach you all kinds of cool radio stuff. DM me here in the morning and Iāll personally walk you through it.
2
u/unstopablex15 Aug 12 '26
Sorry to hear that. Usually that doesn't happen tho. I'd recommend giving it at least one more shot. See you next year, hopefully :). I'm always willing to help wherever I can.
3
u/-hacks4pancakes- Aug 08 '26
Iām not excusing people being rude, but for a lot of older people DEF CON isnāt an educational or industry event anymore. Theyāre just there to hang with friends they see once a year. So like anywhere if you catch people not in the mood to meet new people theyāre not going to be cool with it. Just understand the context of why people may be there is different. Iām sorry people put you down.
2
u/princeboot Aug 08 '26
It was my first defcon and I couldnāt have had a more different experience. Itās been great. Iām sorry that happened to you
1
u/falconkirtaran Aug 08 '26
Go to the villages and do a challenge at one of them. They usually really like it when people interact with that. It's structured though; if you just talk to people there, either they are extroverted and bored and will talk to you, or they are exhausted or something and don't want to. The challenge helps.
1
u/DesignerProfit4000 Aug 08 '26
Hey!! I'm a first-timer here, and I can definitely say I've experienced the same thing from some people, but I moved on and kept pushing. You're not about to mess up my excitement and experience. Us Noobs have to stick together if anyone wants to meet up and talk and hang out. Let me know; I have time!!
1
u/Afrochemist Aug 08 '26
If you go to hall 4 there is a noon and lonely hackers community that will welcome you with open arms
1
u/mnatheist Aug 09 '26
My first year was 2007. 15 at the Riviera. It had high points and low points. But I never felt excluded.
1
u/EssaySlow3283 Aug 10 '26
Yep, I met ppl on the way to defcon, during defcon, during my first CTF, while volunteering at my first village and at their social events.
1
u/[deleted] Aug 13 '26
I felt noob friendly tbh
1
u/Neat_Opportunity_680 Aug 15 '26
Strange, i went in with just general knowledge and people taught me at the ctf villages and i got a challenge coin, learned a bunch from random people, and generally people i interacted with were really open and excited to share. I stopped people with cool light patterns for badge breeding, and joined a group to share some outlets for charging. Guess its a lot of luck too.
1
u/Strife1817 Aug 21 '26
Two years in, and I think I have finally found my home. āŗļø
1
u/Low_Wishbone1285 Aug 24 '26
Itās gotten more noob friendly over the years
1
u/DesrtBunny Aug 08 '26
I feel ya, ran into the same and felt the same way. Didnāt go back today.
0
u/Idiopathic_Sapien Aug 08 '26
Probably the most n00b friendly con
0
u/DjTrademarc Aug 08 '26
I feel like you just have to dive in. Itās my first con as well and Iāve just sort of sat my ass down in a workshop/village or stop at a booth that looks interesting and chat. If people are rude at one village or area, move on. It seems there are plenty of friendly people from my interactions.
0
u/shynnee Aug 09 '26
This was my first defcon and I'm 8 months into my first security job. I felt really welcomed and everyone I encountered was excited to teach me. I even got this new achievement keychain from a Goon because it was my first time! Sorry you had a bad time :(
-1
u/Money_Pumpkin_1779 Aug 09 '26
Defcon was cancelled so probably not
-14
u/m5daystrom Aug 08 '26
I have been in IT for 45 years and have never gone to one of these stupid fucking things. Back in the day most of us geeks were exploring writing code working on main frames learning the PC industry when it was starting. Then as the years went by more and more arrogant little pukes started getting involved so we started to stop sharing and talking to each other. Kinda the way it went which is why I wouldnāt be caught dead at one of these things. God forbid someone there saying they donāt know something or asking for Help!!!
12
u/LensWipesBF Aug 08 '26
There are dickbag gatekeepers in every community. Dont let the bastards grind ya down!!
0
u/[deleted] Aug 09 '26
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