Go home HackMiami you are drunk

IMPORTANT UPDATE 2

The official response:

Track Updates

Recently the HackMiami 2013 Hackers Conference received several complaints from individuals within the information security community regarding the chosen titles of the speaking tracks, NewF%27s and OldF%27s.

These complaints indicated that HackMiami may risk alienating the support of a key demographic within the information security community.

We have discussed the issue at length, and decided that we did indeed plan the track titles in haste, without considering the inclusion or opinions of a very vocal minority. As such, have decided to make some changes.

In addition to the NewF%27s and OldF%27s tracks, we will be creating a new third track that tailors specifically to the audience that was offended by the original oversight, and the track will be called MoralF%27s

The MoralF%27s track will feature talks about hacktivism, digital civil liberties, ethics, legal issues, and free speech.

We hope that this correction satisfies our critics, and we invite them to submit CFPs for this track at:

http://www.hackmiami.com/cfp

Regards,

The HackMiami Conference Team

IMPORTANT UPDATE

Yeah we will change that.—
HACKMIAMI (@hackmiami) January 15, 2013

Thank you for doing the right thing.

Recently, a colleague from a side project contacted me to ask me to submit a talk on the project to HackMiami. Like everybody else in the Western Hemisphere, I immediately thought “sweet, boondoggle!” Even if my employer (who has nothing to do with this post) wouldn’t pay for the trip, I figured I would pay my own way, because, hey! Miami!

Then I read the CFP and… well.

Just in case they change things later, here are the names and descriptions of their tracks:

Track 1 – NewF#gs – A novice track will be available for new hackers who are learning the ropes. If you have a presentation that you believe would be beneficial to the community and will give n00bs a starting point to advance their skillsets, then this is the track for you. Total presentation time is 50 minutes.

Track 2 – OldF#gs – An advanced track for the old school greybeards looking to show off their latest projects and research. If you have any hot research, code drops, vulnerability disclosures, or advanced attack methodologies that you want to present on, then this is the track for you. Total presentation time is 50 minutes.

Now, I recognize the 4chan meme. There is a place in the world for 4chan memes, and that place is 4chan, not a hacker conference with people of all backgrounds. Without really touching the LGBT issues here (which I acknowledge but lie well outside the scope of this blog), the level of unprofessionalism here would stun a rhinoceros. As my buddy and co-worker Kevin asked, what ideas did this beat out? What was worse than this? Did your first draft have “fresh hos” and “used up hos” for the track names and you rejected that for being disrespectful to women? “We need to be more inclusive, guys.”

And hey, if you think any of us want our names and professional reputations hooked up with those terms, you have lost your ever-lovin’ mind.

In sections of the infosec community, we’re having all these discussions about misogyny, privilege, and anti-harassment policies. And then HackMiami decides to name their tracks after childish homophobic little memes from the seedy underbelly of the Internet. Not cool, dudes. Welcome to my list of “conferences I won’t attend because the organizers are scumbags who annoy the crap out of me”.