Black Hat and DEF CON are two of the largest security conferences in the United States, drawing large crowds of cybersecurity and AI decision-makers to Las Vegas. Black Hat USA 2024 runs from August 3-8, with the majority of the briefings taking place on August 7-8; DEF CON 32 runs from August 8-11.
We're rounding up the enterprise technology news from Black Hat and DEF CON that's most relevant to IT and technology decision makers.
How to hold generative AI accountable
A major topic of discussion and research at Black Hat this week will be how to hold generative AI accountable in the event of hallucinations, misinformation, or side effects from generated content.
At the one-day AI Summit (tickets are purchased separately from the rest of Black Hat), experts will discuss how to protect AI models and applications for enterprise use, as well as the use of AI in cyberattacks.
At DEF CON’s AI Village, a team of hackers will be exploring how to detect and report AI flaws. This event is important because both vulnerabilities and methods for reporting them will be discussed in depth. Ideally, this event will help AI vendors create frameworks for more thorough and accurate reporting.
DARPA and other government organizations will also be working to protect generative AI at DEF CON. The AI Cyber Challenge (AIxCC) semi-final competition will test hackers’ skills to protect critical infrastructure in a hypothetical futuristic city.
Patches and vulnerabilities identified
Many organizations at Black Hat and DEF CON will be announcing notable patches and vulnerabilities. We'll be covering them as they emerge. For people attending the conference, there will be plenty of briefings to choose from.
Keynote lectures bring together national and corporate stakeholders
Black Hat 2024 keynote speakers include Cybersecurity and Infrastructure Security Agency Director Jen Easterly, Google Security Engineering Manager Ellen Cram Kowalczyk, and Microsoft Director of Threat Intelligence Strategy Sherrod DeGrippo.
DeGrippo spoke to TechRepublic earlier this month about how to keep businesses safe during the Paris Olympics.
TechRepublic is covering Black Hat and DEF CON remotely. This article will be updated throughout Black Hat and DEF CON with more top stories.
