NEWS


ROOTCON 15 has rebooted! Thank you!
Posted on: 10.04.21

Since the pandemic has given us an uncontrollable challenge but stopping is not an option. The last-minute changes of ROOTCON 15 speak for its theme “Rebooted”, we had to reboot and change everything from being a supposed to be hybrid conference to a full-virtual conference, this wouldn't be possible if the Goons didn't offer their sleepless nights to deliver an excellent quality conference, to our speakers who gave their esteemed time to do their pre-recording to provide ROOTCON a top-notch content. The support of our sponsors gave a huge impact in making this possible, and lastly, to our highly regarded con-goers for being kind and patient in the humps, ROOTCON has been dealing with.

We are looking forward to next year for the Philippine hacking community to connect physically.

Again from all of us at ROOTCON sending our love to everyone! Keep safe and healthy.

Archives and YouTube uploads coming your way.

Official Games Registration
Posted on: 10.04.21

Happy Monday! This is it hacker fam! Time to choose your battle!

Official Games Registration Now Open!

Capture The Flag - The most grueling ROOTCON CTF to date, right at the comfort and safety of your very homes. This pandemic will not stop us from highlighting the best and the brightest talents that our local hacking community has to offer.

Hacker Jeopardy - The Sweet Revenge! Because the game is now virtual (and we have no budget to ship the Blue Labels to all the players), the Goons and Babes will be drinking the booze instead of the players! Answer the question right and the Goons get drunk. Answer the question wrong and the Babes get drunk. Choose your revenge!

Choose your battle wisely

Register Now: https://rootc.onl/official_games_reg (only for registered attendees)

Details:
Hacker Jeopardy
Capture The Flag

Challenge Pins
Posted on: 10.01.21 (Updated 10.03.21)

Aside from the pride, bragging rights, and the coveted black badge which entitles our winners for a free ROOTCON pass, this year 2021 (October 14) ROOTCON launched the ROOTCON Challenge Pins, all official contests winners will be receiving this coveted ROOTCON Challenge Pins. You can be awarded by the ROOTCON Challenge Pins by playing these grueling ROOTCON Official games.

Capture The Flag -- The most grueling game in every hacking conference, ROOTCON is no different! This game is not for the faint-hearted it requires sleepless nights of problem-solving, cryptos, puzzles, and exploitation.

Hacker Jeopardy -- Do you have a liver of a metal, up-to-date with the latest technologies, or have a geekish, nerdish historian-fu skills? This game is for you.

Do you have what it takes to be a well-decorated ROOTCON Official Contests Team? Prove it, earn the pride and the pins!

Check-out our Hall-Of-Fame page.

Updated: October 3, 2021

Hybrid Updates!
Posted on: 09.21.21

Whereas Covid-19 cases have been rising continuously with a daily average of around 20,000 cases, forcing our government to implement heavier and stricter protocols such as ECQ and MECQ to prevent further infection of the virus. Due to these unfortunate circumstances, the hybrid setup for ROOTCON 15 will no longer be proceeding. As much as we want this setup to be implemented, the situation and circumstances make it more difficult for us to mobilize, possibly risking the good health of our beloved con-goers.

In line with this, going full virtual will be the safest and efficient way to conduct our informative and productive conference without risking the health of our participants. But rest assured, our awesome talks will proceed and be delivered as planned, and your conference kits will be delivered to your doorsteps!

For those who signed-up for Human+ you will be refunded with the price difference of Human tickets, kindly contact comms as soon as you can. Once again we apologize for this inconvenience it might cause you and we hope everyone stays safe during this time.

Stay Safe and Lots of love from ROOTCON!

RC 15 Schedule Published
Posted on: 09.03.21

ROOTCON 15 is just around the corner, the pandemic won't stop us!

This year we added two more pre-con days to fill in your conference week for pre-con, we have seven talks to kick-start your conference week! it will be followed by the ZerØ Hour Movie Night late in the evening.

Day &OSlash; we will be hosting the villages to sharpen your hack-fu skills before we start the con proper. Con proper starts on Day 1 & 2, October 14 & 15.

Get pumped up and start planning your conference week. If you haven't registered yet now is a good time!

Village Page is Live!
Posted on: 08.27.21

Villages are now live!

This year's Lock Picking Village is exclusive to Human+ participants only, and it's all about high-security locks. We will have an in-depth discussion and hands-on demo on high-security locks, the different mechanisms, and ways to attack them.

Car Hacking Village will be putting up some talks for newbies to get you started with your automotive hacking-fu.

Keep your radar open for updated village talks and schedules.

Keynote Speakers Announced!
Posted on: 08.23.21

Let's all welcome our keynote speakers for ROOTCON 15!

Harshit Agrawal (@harshitnic)
Harshit Agrawal is currently working as a Radio Security Researcher. He is enthusiastic about SIGINT, Drone Pentesting, and IoT Security. He presented his research at International Security conferences like RSAC USA, DEFCON, HITB Cyberweek, HITB Amsterdam, etc. Previously, he was President at CSI Chapter and Vice President for Entrepreneurship cell at MIT, where he also headed the team of security enthusiasts, giving him a good insight into cybersecurity and increased his thirst to explore more in this field. Learn more: https://www.linkedin.com/in/harshitnic/

Emil Tan
Emil has experience in many cybersecurity trades —including R&D, cybersecurity operations, governance, policies and regulations, and consultancy. Emil is an active contributor in the cybersecurity ecosystem. He plays an active role in catalysing cybersecurity conversations and thought leadership in the community. Amongst many things, he co-founded Division Zero (Div0) —a cybersecurity community group in Singapore—, and Infosec In the City, SINCON —a techno-centric cybersecurity conference. Emil is also often found speaking under various spotlights —including 44CON, Black Hat Asia, BSides London, Hack In the Box (HITB) Singapore, The Honeynet Project Workshop, and at universities and many various cybersecurity plenaries.

RC15 More Tracks Announced!
Posted on: 08.16.21

Let's get this show on the road. We are excited to announce the second and final batch of talks for ROOTCON 15. Here's a glimpse of what was added to the line-up.

Buzzard : Crafting your post exploitation framework against odds
Click Here For Free TV! Chaining Bugs to Takeover Wind Vision Accounts
Gathering Cyber Threat Intelligence from the Cybercriminal Underground
Hack the Planet! Desecuritise Cyberspace
Keeping Up With Modern Automotive Exploitation
Securing Process Control Data Transmission to the Blockchain Network
The Curious case of knowing the unknown
The Kill Chain: Future of Cyber in Defense
Using Wordpress comments section as a C&C for fun
VMProtect2 : Architectural Analysis, Exploitation, and VMP2 IL

Everything is coming to place now! Check the complete track lists.

ANNOUNCEMENT: RC15 Ticketing Platform
Posted on: 08.15.21

We just recently noticed that Eventbrite made a recent change and they removed their Direct Deposit / Bank Transfer feature depending on the processing country, unfortunately, the Philippines was not part of this list. Having said that we will be migrating our registration platform to Eventzilla, this is for us to cater to our con-goers that do not have a Paypal account and will opt for offline registration.

Eventzilla is more flexible, feature-rich, and as intuitive as Eventbrite, it still supports electronic check-in and still supports both iOS and Android for our con-goers to store their electronic tickets.

We apologize for the inconvenience this might cost our con-goers. For those who already registered we will be sending your new tickets directly to your mailbox.

Also a quick reminder that early-bird is nearing an end so hurry and register now!

RC15 Content Now Live
Posted on: 07.16.21

This is it hacker fam, ROOTCON 15 is slowly shaping up, before we will officially open the registration we would like to present to you the initial batch of speakers and their talks.

Check out the Speakers page to know our speakers and the synopsis of their talks on the Talks page.

To know the people who vetted these awesome talks check our CFP Review Board.

RC15 Prices Now Available
Posted on: 07.15.21

This year ROOTCON Hacking Conference will be a hybrid conference, we will be catering both virtual and physical attendees. For questions please refer to FAQ Page or email us at comms [at] rootcon dot org.

Discord, you will be given access at the RC15 - Rebooted Chat Lounge to interact with other con-goers.

Human, you will be able to join the conference virtually via Zoom, other activities such as workshops and trainings are not available.

Human+, if you register as Human+ you will get a full hybrid conference experience, this is in-person at Pico Sands Hotel, a good way to reconnect back to the hacker community in person.

Prices, inclusions and other details at the registration page.

RC15 Venue Details
Posted on: 07.5.21

ROOTCON 15 will be held (and headquartered) at the famous and secluded vacation beaches of Pico De Loro! The venue is ideal during this pandemic as it is well-secluded from the public and their safety protocols help avoid any unnecessary contacts from the outside.

Pico Sands Hotel, two and a half hours away from Manila, the 1.5 kilometer sandy shore of Pico de Loro Cove awaits. Take a break at Pico Sands Hotel, a tropical contemporary seven-story hotel that offers spacious rooms equipped with modern amenities and captivating views of the lush mountains and tranquil lagoon.

RC15 Black Registration Closing Soon
Posted on: 07.5.21

Blackcard registration will be closing on July 19, 2021.

What are the perks?
1. 20% discount on ROOTCON tickets applicable only on regular rates.
2. 10% off on all official ROOTCON swags.
3. FREE Entrance on ROOTCON Hackerspace activities.
4. FREE drinks at the ROOTCON chill-out area on the day of the event.
5. Priority lane during ROOTCON event check-in.

If you have an expired Blackcard email us at comms [at] rootcon dot org.

For new registration please register here.

Call For Sponsors Now Open!
Posted on: 05.29.21

Choose from a wide range of sponsorship opportunities.

✓ Brand Exposure
✓ Community Presence & Support
✓ Recruitment Opportunities
✓ Professional Networking

Visit the sponsorship page

Call For Papers Now Open!
Posted on: 05.27.21

Let's get this party on the road! ROOTCON would like to announce Call For Papers for ROOTCON 15 is now open!

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BEGIN MESSAGE
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WHAT: ROOTCON 15 Call For Papers
WHEN: September 30 & October 1, 2021
WHERE: Hybrid Conference - Physical (Pico Sands Hotel) Virtual (via Zoom)
DEADLINE: July 25, 2021
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END MESSAGE
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Details at Call For Papers

Announcement: ROOTCON 15 Hybrid Con
Posted on: 04.19.21

We are nowhere near the end of this Covid-19 pandemic but that will not stop our creative organizers from delivering another great conference for everyone this year!

ROOTCON 15 will be a hybrid conference this year, having both physical (very limited slots) and virtual (stay at home) sessions available for our attendees.

Date — September 30 & October 1, 2021

Venue  —  For those who will be physically attending the event, ROOTCON 15 will be held (and headquartered) at the famous and secluded vacation beaches of Pico De Loro! The venue is ideal during this pandemic as it is well-secluded from the public and their safety protocols help avoid any unnecessary contacts from the outside.

Physical Attendees —  we REQUIRE that all humans who plan on physically attending the conference to undergo an on-site antigen swab test, and follow the usual proper health protocols such as wearing a face mask and face shield at ALL times. Tables and seating arrangements will be in accordance with the hotel's safety protocols adhering to National and LGU guidelines.

As with the previous year when the pandemic started, majority of RootCon's speakers will come from around the world and will be presenting their talks over videoconference platforms from the safety of their homes or offices. Large screens will be made available to our physical attendees in the hotel's secured conference rooms.

Virtual  —  virtual attendees will be the same as last year where you are given a link to join the conference. Other mediums such as Twitch, Youtube, and Discord will also be available for you to participate and communicate.

Badges This year we will have two types of badges.

* Human  — if you wish to attend virtually you will be given a Human badge, which will be shipped to you a week before the conference.

* Human+ —  for our physical attendees, a Human+ (Human-plus) badge will be given to the attendees, plus a limited edition challenge coin for your collection!

Other inclusions will be posted as soon as we open the registration.

Rates and Registration
Human+ rates will cost a premium over the regular Human registration rates to cover your snacks, meals and your swab test kits. We will be announcing the exact registration rates in the next coming days.

Back-up plans  — Speakers will present their talks LIVE during the event but we require them to submit a recorded version of their talks just in case there will be last-minute restrictions from the government. In the event physical attendance does not push through, ROOTCON will be issuing a refund to our Human+ registrants. Details of the refund guidelines will be posted in the registration page.

We will be putting up an FAQ page specific to the hybrid setup of the conference as soon as we launch the ROOTCON 15 website.

I am looking forward to seeing everyone virtually and physically!

Keep safe!
-semprix

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