DEF CON 34
August 6–9, 2026
Las Vegas Convention Center West Hall — 3150 Paradise Rd, Las Vegas, NV 89109
DEF CON is the world's largest hacker conference — 30,000+ security researchers, ethical hackers, and curious minds converging on Las Vegas for talks, villages, Capture the Flag competitions, and legendary after-hours parties. No pre-registration. No name badge scans. Cash only at the door. This is where cybersecurity culture happens.
Dates
Aug 6–9, 2026
Venue
LVCC West Hall
Attendance
30,000+
Guest List
Free Club Entry
Your DEF CON Resources
Everything for DEF CON 34 Attendees
From badge pickup logistics to after-hours nightclub access — all the information you need for Hacker Summer Camp 2026.
Attendee Guide
Badge pickup, village schedule, and what to bring
🎶Nightlife & After Parties
Calvin Harris, Diplo, Zouk — best clubs during DEF CON
🏨Wynn & Encore
XS + EBC on-property, 1.5 mi from LVCC
🏨The Cosmopolitan
Marquee Nightclub + Dayclub on-property
🏨Caesars Palace
OMNIA Nightclub + OMNIA Dayclub connected via bridge
🗺️All Hotels
Browse all Las Vegas hotels with nightlife access
What Sets DEF CON Apart
The Conference That Runs on Cash and Curiosity
DEF CON has no corporate sponsor agenda, no name-badge RFID tracking, no pre-registered attendee lists, and no assigned seating. You pay cash at the door. You get a badge — an electronic one with circuits and embedded puzzles baked into the hardware. Solving the badge puzzle is not a side activity; it is part of the conference itself. Teams form spontaneously in the hallways. Clues spread through IRC channels and hotel corridors. Some badge challenges have taken years to fully solve.
The village structure is what makes DEF CON different from any other conference in the world. Fifty-plus independent communities set up their own spaces, run their own talks, and design their own competitions — the Lockpick Village, the Car Hacking Village, the Social Engineering Village, the Hardware Hacking Village, and dozens more. Each village functions as a mini conference with its own culture. A first-timer who spends their entire DEF CON inside three villages will come away with more practical skills than someone who attends ten years of corporate security trainings.
The Wall of Sheep is a live display of usernames and partial passwords captured from unencrypted traffic on the conference network. It is not malicious — it is a public demonstration that even security professionals send credentials in cleartext when their guard is down. Appearing on the Wall of Sheep is considered a rite of passage for many attendees, though nobody admits to enjoying it.
DEF CON is the final event of Hacker Summer Camp — the informal convergence of DEF CON, Black Hat USA, and BSides Las Vegas that draws more than 60,000 security professionals to Las Vegas in a 10-day window each August. Black Hat at Mandalay Bay (Aug 2–7) serves the corporate and enterprise security market. BSides at Tuscany Suites (Aug 3–5) is the peer-reviewed, community-organized alternative for researchers who want unfiltered conversations. DEF CON is the culmination — less structured, more anarchic, and by far the largest.
Getting In
How DEF CON Badge Pickup Works
Cash Only — No Exceptions
DEF CON badges are sold at the door in cash. No credit cards, no Venmo, no crypto. The price for DEF CON 34 is typically $400–440 — confirmed on defcon.org closer to the event. Bring cash, plus buffer for ATM fees and the vendor area. LVCC ATMs are heavily used by Thursday afternoon and often run dry by Friday.
No Pre-Registration
There is no online ticket purchase, no early-access registration, and no waitlist for DEF CON general admission. Anyone can walk up to the badge window Thursday morning with cash and get in. Arrive before 8:00 AM to minimize wait time on opening day — lines can run two hours when the doors open.
The Electronic Badge
DEF CON badges are not paper lanyards — they are functional electronic devices with custom circuitry, LEDs, and embedded firmware. Each year's badge contains a multi-stage puzzle that the community works to solve collectively over the four days of the conference and for weeks afterward. The badge hacking village has tools, tips, and community support for attendees who want to dig in.
DEF CON Training (Separate)
DEF CON Training runs August 7–11, 2026 — two-day intensive technical courses that run before and overlap with the main con. Training requires a separate registration through defcon.org and typically costs $1,500–3,000 per course. Topics cover offensive and defensive techniques, reverse engineering, malware analysis, and more at a depth not available in general conference sessions.
Schedule
DEF CON 34 Show Hours
Thursday, August 6
Opening day. Badge sales begin ~8 AM. Expect the longest lines.
8:00 AM – 8:00 PM
Friday, August 7
Full day. Black Hat USA wraps this day — security crowd doubles.
8:00 AM – 8:00 PM
Saturday, August 8
Peak day. Official DEF CON party is Saturday evening.
8:00 AM – 8:00 PM
Sunday, August 9
Closing day. CTF finals awards. Shorter hours — wrap early.
10:00 AM – 4:00 PM
Villages and CTF competitions often run later than official hours. The official DEF CON party is typically Saturday evening and is included with badge purchase. Check defcon.org and the DEF CON app for final schedule confirmations.
Village Guide
DEF CON Villages — Where the Real Learning Happens
DEF CON has over 50 villages — independent community spaces each focused on a specific security domain. Entry is free with your badge. Below are eight of the most popular and most hands-on. Plan your schedule around the villages that align with your work, then explore the ones that don't. The cross-discipline exposure is half the value of DEF CON.
Lockpick Village
The Lockpick Village is one of DEF CON's longest-running and most accessible stops. Physical security professionals and hobbyists teach hands-on lockpicking from beginner padlocks to high-security cylinders. No prior experience required — instructors walk you through tension wrenches and picks in real time. By Sunday you will have opened more locks than you thought possible.
Car Hacking Village
The Car Hacking Village bridges digital and physical security by putting real vehicle ECUs, OBD-II interfaces, and CAN bus tools directly in attendees' hands. Researchers demonstrate how modern vehicle systems can be accessed, modified, or taken over through software vulnerabilities. The hands-on labs run challenges ranging from introductory CAN bus sniffing to full ECU firmware analysis.
Social Engineering Village
Live demonstrations of human-layer exploitation — phone calls, pretexting, and psychological manipulation performed against consenting targets in real time. The SECTF (Social Engineering Capture the Flag) competition is a signature event where contestants call real companies live on stage attempting to gather specific pieces of information using only their voice and wits. Watching world-class social engineers work is both instructive and uncomfortable in the best way.
Hardware Hacking Village
Focused on embedded systems, firmware extraction, JTAG/UART debugging, and hardware reverse engineering. The soldering stations are open to beginners — bring your broken devices or buy a target board from the village supply table. Experts walk through everything from power glitching to EEPROM dumps. This village demonstrates that digital security has physical edges.
IoT Village
Hundreds of real consumer devices — routers, cameras, smart home hubs, baby monitors — are set up for hands-on exploitation. The IoT Village demonstrates in concrete terms how thoroughly consumer-grade devices fail at security. Attendees pick up techniques for network scanning, firmware analysis, and default-credential attacks, and watch researchers pop open devices that millions of homes are running right now.
Wireless Village
Covers the full spectrum of radio-frequency security: Wi-Fi, Bluetooth, Zigbee, Z-Wave, and beyond. The Wireless CTF challenges range from WEP/WPA cracking warm-ups to software-defined radio signal analysis. The village runs hands-on labs with actual access points and controlled rogue networks — none of the wireless trickery escapes into the real conference network.
Red Team Village
Offensive security techniques from the enterprise perspective — active directory attacks, lateral movement, command-and-control frameworks, and evasion methods. The Red Team Village bridges the gap between individual hacking skills and coordinated team operations. Panel discussions with professional red teamers about methodology, rules of engagement, and lessons learned from real engagements are a regular feature.
Aerospace Village
Aviation cybersecurity research applied to real aircraft systems — avionics interfaces, ADS-B spoofing, satellite communication vulnerabilities, and drone security. The Aerospace Village brings decommissioned aircraft equipment and flight simulators to Las Vegas. Researchers who spend their year working in obscure corners of FAA certification get to share what they found with an audience that can appreciate it.
The full village list is published on defcon.org. Additional villages include the Voting Machine Hacking Village, Aviation Village, AI Village, Biohacking Village, Crypto and Privacy Village, Packet Hacking Village, and more. Village spaces open at the start of the conference and often run independently of the main stage talk schedule.
Competition
DEF CON CTF — The Most Prestigious Hacking Competition in the World
The DEF CON Capture the Flag competition is widely regarded as the Super Bowl of competitive security. Elite teams qualify through the DEF CON CTF Qualifier (held online in May 2026) and then compete live at the conference in Las Vegas. The final round runs attack-defense style — teams simultaneously attack each other's infrastructure while defending their own. The challenges involve vulnerabilities in custom operating systems, firmware, network services, and cryptographic implementations that the game designers build specifically for the competition.
Winning DEF CON CTF is considered one of the highest achievements in competitive security. Past winners include teams like PPP (Carnegie Mellon), DEFKOR (Korea University), and Shellphish (UC Santa Barbara). The competition is open to watch live in the CTF area — the leaderboard updates in real time and the atmosphere is electric as teams cycle through submission attempts in the final hours.
If you want to participate, the qualifier round in May 2026 is how teams earn invitations. Alternatively, DEF CON hosts several smaller CTF competitions and challenge rooms that are open to any badge holder — including beginner-friendly puzzle challenges that run throughout the conference. The CTF area is one of the best places to meet other technically-focused attendees and start conversations.
Packing List
What to Bring to DEF CON 2026
DEF CON packing is different from any other conference. Some items that seem optional are mandatory. Some items you would normally bring are wrong choices here.
Cash ($500+)
DEF CON badges are cash-only at the door — no credit cards, no PayPal, no crypto. Bring $400–440 for the badge and additional cash for the vendor area, some village activities, and drinks. ATMs at the LVCC are heavily used and often run out of cash by Friday afternoon.
Burner Laptop or Clean Device
Leave your work machine at home. DEF CON's network is intentionally hostile — the Wall of Sheep display captures unencrypted credentials in real time as an educational demonstration. If you must bring a personal device, factory reset before attending, disable automatic connections, and use only a personal mobile hotspot for internet access.
Water Bottle
Las Vegas in August averages 103°F outdoors. The LVCC is air-conditioned but massive — you will walk miles per day. Dehydration is the most common preventable reason people feel awful by Saturday. Bring a large insulated bottle and refill it constantly.
Comfortable Walking Shoes
The Las Vegas Convention Center West Hall spans 600,000 square feet. Add walks between villages, the badge line, the CTF area, and excursions to Resorts World next door, and 10,000+ steps per day is realistic. Dress shoes will ruin you by day two.
Going-Out Outfit (for clubs after hours)
Las Vegas nightclubs enforce a dress code. XS at Wynn, OMNIA at Caesars, and Marquee at The Cosmopolitan will not admit men in the standard hacker uniform of jeans and a black t-shirt. Pack at least one collared shirt or button-down if you plan to hit the Strip clubs after dark. Women have more flexibility.
VPN and Privacy Setup
Beyond the conference Wi-Fi, your hotel and any Strip venue you visit will have open or WPA2-shared networks. Use a VPN on your mobile data. Sign out of corporate email clients and disable push notifications for sensitive apps. The Wall of Sheep is meant as a reminder — use it as one.
Sunscreen and Hat
Any walk outside between the LVCC and Resorts World, Wynn, or The Venetian involves serious UV exposure. The desert sun at 103°F is unforgiving even for short walks. August in Las Vegas burns people who have never experienced desert summer heat.
Hacker Summer Camp
Black Hat + BSides + DEF CON — The Full Week
Most Hacker Summer Camp veterans attend multiple events in the same week. Here is how the schedule stacks:
Black Hat USA
Aug 2–7, Mandalay Bay
Commercial conference for enterprise security practitioners. Paid trainings plus briefings. 20,000+ attendees. Corporate-focused with major vendor sponsorships and a Business Hall.
BSides Las Vegas
Aug 3–5, Tuscany Suites
Free, community-organized conference at Tuscany Suites (2 miles from Mandalay Bay). Peer-reviewed talks, open atmosphere. Registration is free but capped — apply early on bsideslv.org.
DEF CON 34
Aug 6–9, LVCC West Hall
Cash at the door. 50+ villages. CTF competition. Electronic badge puzzles. 30,000+ attendees. The largest and most culturally significant event of the three.
If you are flying in for the full week, book Sunday August 2 through Monday August 10 to capture all three events without mid-week checkout-and-check-in logistics. A central Strip hotel between Mandalay Bay (south Strip) and the LVCC (north Strip) — Cosmopolitan, Caesars, or Venetian — is the most practical base for attending all three events.
After Hours
Nightlife During DEF CON Week
DEF CON parties are a fixture of Hacker Summer Camp. The official DEF CON party (Saturday evening, included with badge) is the largest gathering of the con — music, drinks, and the accumulated energy of 30,000 people who have spent three days in talks and villages. Vendor-sponsored parties run throughout the week, announced through booths, DEF CON Discord, and word-of-mouth. Some of the best unofficial parties are invite-only and circulate through attendee networks rather than public listings.
Beyond the hacker party circuit, the Las Vegas Strip is immediately accessible. August is peak DJ and pool party season on the Strip. Calvin Harris and Diplo hold active residencies at XS Nightclub and Encore Beach Club at Wynn Las Vegas. Fisher, Tiësto, and Martin Garrix anchor the OMNIA Dayclubsummer calendar at Caesars Palace. The LVCC's position at the north end of the Strip makes Zouk Nightclub at Resorts World (0.8 miles, walkable) and XS at Wynn (1.5 miles) the closest major venues.
One logistics reality for DEF CON attendees: the overlap with Black Hat (which wraps August 7) means the Friday and Saturday of DEF CON week are among the busiest nightclub nights of the entire Las Vegas summer. 50,000+ convention attendees compete for the same Friday spots. Submit the guest list form below before you arrive — it is the fastest way to guarantee free entry and skip the general-admission line.
Zouk Nightclub
0.8 mi from LVCC · Resorts World
XS Nightclub
Calvin Harris · Wynn Las Vegas
Encore Beach Club
Calvin Harris + Diplo · Wynn
AYU Dayclub
Walkable from LVCC · Resorts World
OMNIA Dayclub
Fisher + Tiësto · Caesars Palace
OMNIA Nightclub
Tiësto + Steve Aoki · Caesars
Full DEF CON 2026 Nightlife Guide — clubs, pool parties, strip clubs, tips →
Where to Stay
Best Hotels for DEF CON 2026 Attendees
The LVCC sits at the north end of the Strip. Hotel selection is a tradeoff between convention proximity, nightlife access, and price. These are the best options across all three priorities.
Resorts World Las Vegas
Adjacent to the LVCC West Hall. Zouk Nightclub and AYU Dayclub on-property. 0.8 mi from badge window.
Wynn & Encore Las Vegas
XS Nightclub and Encore Beach Club on-property. Calvin Harris residency. 1.5 mi from LVCC — best nightlife base.
The Venetian
Tao Nightclub and Tao Beach on-property. Walking distance to LVCC. Opens Thursday evenings.
Caesars Palace
OMNIA Nightclub and OMNIA Dayclub connected via bridge. 2 mi from LVCC.
The Cosmopolitan
Marquee Nightclub and Dayclub on-property. Central Strip for both Black Hat and DEF CON.
Fontainebleau Las Vegas
LIV Nightclub and LIV Beach on-property. North Strip, closest to LVCC. David Guetta and Tiësto in August.
Pool Parties During DEF CON 2026
August is peak pool party season. Every major dayclub runs full programming during DEF CON week. AYU Dayclub at Resorts World is walkable from the LVCC. Encore Beach Club at Wynn is the highest-production option.
See all pool parties →Gentlemen's Clubs
Strip Clubs During DEF CON
Convention weeks are peak nights at Las Vegas gentlemen's clubs. NoCoverVegas provides free entry and a free guest list from your hotel to all partner venues — no cover charge, no minimum spend.
See all Las Vegas strip clubs →Nightlife Resources
DEF CON Attendee Nightlife Guides
DEF CON 2026 — FAQ
Where is DEF CON 2026 (DEF CON 34)?
DEF CON 34 is at the Las Vegas Convention Center West Hall, 3150 Paradise Rd, Las Vegas, NV 89109. DEF CON moved to the LVCC from Paris/Bally's (its previous home) to accommodate growing attendance. The LVCC West Hall gives the con more floor space than any previous venue — villages, CTF, the talks schedule, and the vendor area are all under one large roof for the first time.
What are the DEF CON 2026 dates and hours?
DEF CON 34 runs Thursday August 6 through Sunday August 9, 2026. Show hours are 8:00 AM to 8:00 PM Thursday through Saturday, and 10:00 AM to 4:00 PM on Sunday (closing day). DEF CON Training (separate ticketed event) runs August 7–11. The official DEF CON party is typically held Saturday evening and is included with badge purchase.
How do I buy a DEF CON badge?
DEF CON general admission badges are sold at the door in cash only. There is no online pre-registration, no advance ticket sales, and no waitlist. Bring $400–440 in cash (exact amount varies year to year and is announced closer to the event on defcon.org). Badge pickup and sales open Thursday morning around 8:00 AM. Arrive early — Thursday morning lines can stretch for hours. The electronic badge includes embedded puzzles and circuits that are part of the DEF CON experience itself.
What is Hacker Summer Camp?
Hacker Summer Camp is the informal name for the annual convergence of DEF CON, Black Hat USA, and BSides Las Vegas during the first and second weeks of August. Black Hat runs August 2–7 at Mandalay Bay — attended by 20,000+ corporate security professionals. BSides Las Vegas (free, community-run) runs August 3–5 at Tuscany Suites. DEF CON caps the week August 6–9 at the LVCC. Together, Hacker Summer Camp brings 60,000+ cybersecurity professionals to Las Vegas in a 10-day window — the largest annual gathering of the global security community.
What are DEF CON villages?
Villages are independently organized mini-conferences within DEF CON, each focused on a specific security topic. Examples include the Lockpick Village, Car Hacking Village, Hardware Hacking Village, Social Engineering Village, Wireless Village, IoT Village, Red Team Village, and Aerospace Village. Each village runs its own talks, hands-on labs, and competitions. Villages are free with your DEF CON badge and are often where the most technically dense and hands-on content happens.
What is the DEF CON Wall of Sheep?
The Wall of Sheep is a live display at DEF CON showing usernames and partial passwords of attendees caught sending unencrypted credentials over the conference network. It is both an educational demonstration and a reminder that the DEF CON network is intentionally hostile. Every year, even experienced security professionals get caught. The Wall of Sheep is not malicious — it is a public service announcement. Appear on it and you earn a story to tell for years.
Is DEF CON good for beginners?
Yes — DEF CON is intentionally accessible to newcomers. The culture values curiosity over credentials. Many villages run beginner workshops alongside advanced talks. The Lockpick Village, for example, provides tools and instruction regardless of prior experience. The DEF CON Discord and forums are active before the event and can help first-timers plan their schedule. Start with the villages rather than the main stage talks — they have shorter lines, more interaction, and are where the hands-on skills live.
How is DEF CON different from Black Hat USA?
Black Hat is a commercial conference with paid training courses, a sponsor-heavy Business Hall, and polished briefings aimed at enterprise security buyers. It costs thousands of dollars to attend. DEF CON is community-run, anti-commercial in ethos, and costs $400–440 for general admission — cash at the door. Black Hat attendees tend to be corporate security professionals on company expense accounts; DEF CON draws independent researchers, students, government security teams, and hackers of every background.
What nightclubs are near DEF CON at the LVCC?
Zouk Nightclub at Resorts World Las Vegas is the closest major club — 0.8 miles from the LVCC West Hall entrance, walkable in 15 minutes or a 5-minute rideshare. XS Nightclub and Encore Beach Club at Wynn Las Vegas are 1.5 miles away (10-minute rideshare). OMNIA Nightclub at Caesars Palace is 2 miles (12 minutes). The north Strip corridor is well-positioned for convention attendees.
Can I go to pool parties during DEF CON week?
Yes. DEF CON runs August 6–9, the heart of Las Vegas pool party season. AYU Dayclub at Resorts World is a 15-minute walk from the LVCC West Hall — the most convenient pool break during a busy day. Encore Beach Club at Wynn runs Friday through Sunday with Calvin Harris in residence. OMNIA Dayclub at Caesars Palace features Fisher, Tiësto, and Martin Garrix on the August calendar. All dayclubs accept the NoCoverVegas free guest list for free or reduced entry.
Where should I stay for DEF CON 2026?
Resorts World Las Vegas is the closest major hotel to the LVCC — adjacent to the West Hall with Zouk Nightclub and AYU Dayclub on-property. Westgate Las Vegas connects directly via skybridge and is the most logistically efficient option. Sahara Las Vegas is a short walk north. Wynn and Encore are the best choice if nightlife access matters — XS and Encore Beach Club are on-property. If attending both Black Hat and DEF CON, a central Strip hotel like Cosmopolitan or Caesars balances access to both venues.
Is there parking at the LVCC for DEF CON?
The Las Vegas Convention Center has surface parking lots and a parking garage. Parking costs $10–20 per day during DEF CON. Lots fill early on opening day — arrive before 9:00 AM Thursday if you need on-site parking. The Las Vegas Monorail has a Convention Center station one stop north of Wynn. Rideshare is typically $8–15 from mid-Strip hotels and is the most convenient option for most attendees.
Las Vegas Nightlife — All Resources
Nightclubs
Pool Parties
Free Guest List for DEF CON 2026 Attendees
Get On The List
Free nightclub entry and free guest list to strip clubs during DEF CON week — August 6–9, 2026. No cover charges, no lines.