July 2025 Happenings

 

Join Us For Our Annual Event! When: August 4th, 2025 Where: UNLV Student Center Buy your tickets now https://www.eventbrite.com/e/the-diana-initiative-2025-tickets-1257583047749  If you can't make it in person, don’t worry! We're recording all the talks and will post it online for free after the event. In addition to talks and workshops, we will have a number of activities for attendees to enjoy.  Adversary Village Adversary Village is a community initiative that purely focuses on adversary tactics, adversary simulation/emulation, threat/APT/Ransomware emulation, breach and attack simulation, supply chain security, adversary life, adversary mindset, philosophy, urban survival skills and purple teaming. Learn more at https://adversaryvillage.org Capture the Flag Competition We're having a CTF this year on the MetaCTF platform. We're excited to have both in-person and at-home options available for participants to compete. You will be able to participate on a team or as an individual. The competition runs 9:00 AM - TBD PM on Monday, August 4, 2025! Career Village and lightning talks Come have your resume reviewed, get some career advice, or do a mock interview. There will also be career-focused lightning talks. Maker Village Always our most popular activity. Our lead maker will walk you through learning to solder, and for those who buy an electronic badge kit, assembling your own electronic badge! Noob Village Noob Village exists to make cybersecurity more approachable, inclusive, and human. Everyone deserves a place to explore this field, regardless of background, experience level, or access to traditional pathways. They create welcoming, hands-on spaces where learners can ask questions, try new things, and grow with the support of others. Whether at conferences, meetups, classrooms, or online, Noob Village is wherever curiosity and community meet. Physical Security Village Formerly known as the Lock Bypass Village, the Physical Security Village (PSV) is a security awareness initiative that makes appearances at security conferences and other educational functions. Learn more at https://physsec.org/ Quiet and Crafting Room Come here to recenter, fidget, or do some quiet crafting. We have coloring pages, yarn, and puzzles.  Neurodivergent Dinner TDI will be hosting a neurodiversity dinner, a great opportunity for people to get together, network, and enjoy a meal together. Tickets are only $20. Grab your tickets today!  https://www.eventbrite.com/e/tdi-neurodivergent-dinner-2025-tickets-1371224743119?aff=oddtdtcreator  Black Hat USA Returns to Mandalay Bay Convention Center!  Black Hat USA returns to the Mandalay Bay Convention Center in Las Vegas with a 6-day program. The event will open with four days of specialized cybersecurity training (August 2-5), with courses for all skill levels. Also taking place during Black Hat USA is Summit Day on Tuesday, August 5, followed by the two-day main conference on August 6 & 7 featuring more than 100 selected Briefings, dozens of open-source tool demos in Arsenal, a robust Business Hall, networking and social events, and much more. Register today! https://www.blackhat.com/us-25/registration.html.  Learn more about the event and available pass types! Meet Our 2025 Scholarship Winners Congratulations to our 2025 scholarship recipients. We look forward to having them this year at DefCon. Head over to our blog to learn more about who they are and their love for all things cybersecurity.  Abhijeet Kumar Carmela Gonzales Desiree Paya Jia Hu Jennifer Peterson Swetha Srikanth Pai Paola Mendiola Efigenio Emiliano Antonio Jimenez Will you be at DEFCON this year? We will too! We are so excited to return home (we started at DEFCON!) as a community at DEFCON 33! We love that DEFCON 33’s theme is 'Access Everywhere.' Stop by and check us out if you too will be attending August 7-10! https://defcon.org/html/defcon-33/dc-33-communities.html  Need a moment to breathe? We’re creating a quiet, library-themed retreat — a calm, judgment-free space where attendees can decompress, stim, or simply take a break to recenter and recharge. Whether you’re experiencing sensory overload, social fatigue, or just need a timeout, this space is for you. At our “reference desk,” you’ll also find supportive volunteers who can help you map out a plan for re-engaging with DEF CON or connect you with communities and resources that can support you beyond the event. Have ideas on what you would like to see in the quiet area? Share them here:  https://docs.google.com/forms/d/e/1FAIpQLScxHASn7rntv5GZyALAhwy1d7rnFr_tgHgP5JYZ-ji6BmXHEg/viewform?dods  We also have a separate space where we plan to host community discussions, and our call for content for the discussion area is open! Find out more and submit here:  https://docs.google.com/forms/d/e/1FAIpQLScU8mVc3v1rUnrXgcwLSJY85TIIkXECyyJouD2x61l-KtVSog/viewform  Donate Today! Join us in our mission to create a more inclusive information security industry. You can make a difference by contributing through a one-time or monthly donation. Together, we can create a meaningful impact! https://crm.bloomerang.co/HostedDonation?ApiKey=pub_1be507da-750f-11ef-9e7a-0abe7fff0dfd&WidgetId=1072128 When donating, you can specifically donate to the scholarship program https://crm.bloomerang.co/HostedDonation?ApiKey=pub_1be507da-750f-11ef-9e7a-0abe7fff0dfd&WidgetId=1072128, which is where we try to raise funds to send 10 (or more) scholars to “Hacker Summer Camp” (Diana Initiative, DEF CON, and more!). Would you rather donate by direct purchase? We have an Amazon wishlist: https://www.amazon.com/hz/wishlist/ls/1FB4L466GQG3L  Donate Thank You Sponsors! Every year, our event thrives thanks to the ongoing and generous support of companies and organizations within the InfoSec Community. A special thank you to the sponsors who have joined us for 2025!