Security B-Sides: Rise of the 'Anti-conference'

Next week's RSA 2010 conference will have some nearby competition. Here's the story of Security B-Sides as the conference alternative.

By , Senior Editor

February 24, 2010 — CSO —

When security professionals flock to San Francisco for next week's RSA 2010 security conference, they will have access to a set of presentations and events not found on the official RSA agenda.

It's billed as an anti-conference of sorts; a place where practitioners can go for an alternate, stripped-down view of the industry. Welcome to Security B-Sides.

The B-Sides website says the goal is to expand the spectrum of conversation "beyond the traditional confines of space and time," giving people the chance to "both present and participate in an intimate atmosphere that encourages collaboration. It is an intense event with discussions, demos and interaction from participants."

The last big event was held in Las Vegas to coincide with last summer's Black Hat and Defcon conferences. Next week's event will be held March 2-3 from 10 a.m. to 5 p.m. at the pariSoma Innovation loft at 1436 Howard St. (at 10th), near the Moscone Center, where RSA 2010 will be held. The event is free, though representatives from the Electronic Frontier Foundation will be accepting donations.

Additional B-Sides events will take place in Austin, Texas on March 13, and Boston from April 24-25, the weekend after the popular SourceBoston conference.

Zach Lanier, a Boston-based security practitioner who has played a leading role in the Security Twits community on Twitter, is helping to pull off the Boston event.

"I got involved chiefly because I really dig the 'uncon' concept, and because I think it serves an ever-growing need," Lanier said. "There's an overwhelming amount of computer security and hacking knowledge to be shared and talked about. Major conferences are, understandably, quite selective in accepting talks, and some of the proposals may not even fit the theme of that particular con."

Security B-Sides provides an opportunity for folks to give those very talks and maybe even inspire some attendees to hop up and give a talk of their own, he added.

In an effort to better explain the origins of Security B-Sides, CSOonline.com asked three active participants to share stories of their involvement and why they think it's important:

Jack Daniel, a National Information Security Group (NAISG) director; self-described "reluctant CISSP and infosec curmudgeon" and community development manager at Astaro AG

"The idea that became B-Sides began when Black Hat USA 2009 sent out their thanks, but no thanks messages to those whose presentations were not accepted, several lamented their rejection on Twitter and the idea was proposed to provide an alternate venue for talks. The first event came together quickly with a lot of effort from several people; it was a great combination of intelligent presentations and discussions, some which just wouldn't fit into larger conferences. The relaxed atmosphere was more intellectual frat house than security conference.

RESOURCE CENTER