In 2005, I was happy. I'd earned my CEH and CISSP certifications and was content in a job performing security testing. I'd heard about "hackers" and their "0-days" but had never met one nor developed an exploit myself. It was at my first Defcon in 2006 where I learned that hackers did more at conferences than merely attend talks. They participated. They shared. They picked locks! OMG THEY PICKED LOCKS! This was a community that I wanted to join but I didn't know how.
If this sounds like you (or your friend), I encourage you to join me for this talk. We'll laugh. We'll cry. Oh and I will share my top strategies for joining the infosec community too!
Micah Hoffman has been working in the information technology field since 1998 supporting federal government, commercial, and internal customers in their searches to discover and quantify information security weaknesses within their organizations. He leverages years of hands-on, real-world penetration testing and incident response experience to provide excellent solutions to his customers. Micah holds GIAC's GMON, GAWN, GWAPT, and GPEN certifications as well as the CISSP and is a SANS Certified Instructor. Micah is an active member in the NoVAHackers community, writes Recon-ng modules and enjoys tackling issues with the Python scripting language. When not working, teaching, or learning, Micah can be found hiking or backpacking on Appalachian Trail or the many park trails in Maryland.