“Feds, we need some time apart.”
So read a message posted to the website of the Def Con 21 conference Wednesday by Jeff Moss, the Def Con founder known as Dark Tangent, representing the first time since the conference began in 1992 that the organizers have asked federal agents and officials to not attend.
“For over two decades Def Con has been an open nexus of hacker culture, a place where seasoned pros, hackers, academics and feds can meet, share ideas and party on neutral territory,” said Moss, who’s also the chief security officer of ICANN and since 2009 a member of the U.S. Homeland Security Advisory Council.
“When it comes to sharing and socializing with feds, recent revelations have made many in the community uncomfortable about this relationship. Therefore, I think it would be best for everyone involved if the feds call a ‘time-out’ and not attend Def Con this year,” he said. “This will give everybody time to think about how we got here, and what comes next.”