I used to write for Network World, most notably with respect to wireless and networking security.
I lived in Las Vegas at the time, and never missed the annual
DEFCON. "DEF CON is one of the oldest continuously running hacker conventions around, and also one of the largest." People gather to share their exploits and learn from others.
It's HUGE, with meeting rooms galore and people spilling out into the isles, mostly sitting down while plugging away at their laptops.
I attended many outstanding presentations, most (if not all) of which are available on their website,
here.
Here's
one of the better speeches I've enjoyed.
White/gray hackers are highly valued as a means of testing and securing networks against the black hats. I include gray hats in the mix, as they're usually much better than the white hats at cutting-edge techniques, primarily because they're actually hacking away, improving their craft. Yes, the gray hats break the law. They do illegal things. By and large, however, they don't do destructive things. They hack to learn more, even if it means breaking the law. Black hats do the same, but their ultimate goal is destruction (inflicting huge financial harm) and theft (does the same, but makes them rich).
