Hack In The Box (HITB), is back and has returned fully virtual this time around. Now in its second edition, HITB⁺CyberWeek will once again host the main HITB Security Conference and provide a unique platform for the world’s top thinkers and cyber security experts, enabling them to share their latest knowledge, ideas, and techniques with the wider security community.

“Although the pandemic forced us to go fully virtual this year, the talks, speakers and contests we’ve lined up will be no less exciting”, said \ Founder and CEO of HITB. “If there is one thing we’ve learned from recent events, is that criminals never rest, and security incidences always rise during times of crisis. The ‘new normal’ is here to stay and the way we learn, work, play and live will never be the same again. It’s our collective jobs to think of new ways to collaborate, to share our knowledge and equip ourselves.”

HITB⁺CyberWeek will serve as a virtual networking platform, matching attendees based on mutual interests and connecting them with exhibitors and each other to discuss and explore topics of interest. Seasoned security professionals will get to engage with subject matter experts and participate in extensive knowledge sharing through various breakout sessions, hands-on labs, and workshops. There will also be various panel discussions, adversary simulations, security competitions, and challenges for attendees to practice their skills and learn new ones.

Veteran Keynote Speakers  
Like all HITB Security Conferences, HITB⁺CyberWeek will bring together some of the most significant contributors to the security industry of our time. This year, legendary cryptology guru, and internationally renowned security technologist, Bruce Schneier, will deliver the opening keynote on 18 November in an ‘Ask Me Anything’ style presentation where members of the audience have the chance to pick his brains.

Joining him on Day 2 is internet pioneer and Internet Hall of Fame inductee, Dr Paul Vixie. Best known as the author of open source internet software BIND 8, along with many standards concerning DNS and DNSSEC, his keynote covers the ever-increasing prevalence of pervasive monitoring and the competing encryption standards waiting to be deployed to address this. He’ll cover not only the inner technical workings, but how these technologies are being deployed.

Cyber Battle of the Emirates
Cyber Battle of the Emirates is a Capture the Flag (CTF) competition organized by Estonia’s Cybexer Technologies and CTF Tech. Aiming to give a space to the best and brightest high school and college students to shine, Cyber Battle of the Emirates is where as many as 15 teams consisting of five members each will compete in a two-day contest. HITB has also invited the respective winners from the Estonian, Belgian, and German Cyber Security Challenge competitions who’ll play alongside student teams from the UAE and elsewhere.

Red vs Blue CTF
RvB CTF is where individual cyber security enthusiasts can participate in real world challenges and learn new attack vectors, techniques, and more. The idea behind this CTF is to touch on a little bit of everything – from open source intelligence (OSINT) to post exploitation techniques.

“HITB conferences take place in several countries though we aim to create a single global environment to discuss new ideas, facilitate networking amongst our peers, and hopefully inspire the next generation of security researchers,” continued Dhillon. “The latter of these is particularly important, especially when considering the evolving threat landscape that has changed so drastically in 2020 alone. We must educate up-and-coming generations and ensure they have the necessary tools, knowledge, and skills.”