LAS VEGAS -- For nine years, Defcon has been known as the world's most exuberant party for hackers and hacker hopefuls who gather in sin city for a rollicking good time.
Conference organizers call it the "annual computer underground party for hackers," and Defcon is known as much for its technical content as its beer-tinged hijinks. Pranks such as smoke bombs in hotel pools, portions of telephone trucks mysteriously appearing in the convention hall and concrete dumped in toilets have earned Defcon a reputation as a kind of annual hacker bacchanalia.
Until now. With little fanfare, Defcon has gradually gone corporate.
A few years ago, conference-goers who didn't want to pay the registration fee or couldn't afford it managed to sneak in with few problems. Now, professional security guards stationed at metal fences aggressively check badges.
Instead of taking a laissez-faire approach to underage drinking -- over a third of the attendees seem to be under 21 -- the Defcon website now stresses that the bar is only "for those of you over 21."
For the convenience of the television crews, who descend on the conference hoping for images of pink-haired hacker girls, Defcon has mimicked government agencies and now features daily press conferences. To obtain press credentials, members of the media must sign a two-page form listing rules and regulations that journalists agree to follow.
Much of this was inevitable as the conference grew and matured. It's tricky to hold any "underground" party when over 4,200 people show up -- that's the total for last year. And having paid organizers improves efficiency and eliminates lines during the registration process.
But the stealthy corporatization of Defcon has irked some hackers who are particularly anti-authoritarian -- even if the authorities are fellow geeks.
A photocopied flyer distributed anonymously at the conference likens Defcon to an event organized by hacker arch-enemy Microsoft. It urges attendees: "don't pay for DC registrations ... steal a badge ... reclaim your culture ... hack the exploiters ... ignore the rules ... don't buy anything."
Besides, Defcon hasn't lost its spirit.
Speakers Friday included security guru Bruce Schneier, author James Bamford and ph0tek, whose presentation was titled "Writing Back Doors."
When Defcon started, the computer security field was not nearly as well defined as it is now -- precious few people had even heard of the Internet -- but nine years later, many of the topics that once drew crowds are old news. One exception is wireless security, especially 802.11 networks, which has generated the most buzz so far this year and is the focus of some presentations scheduled for this weekend.
Another new twist is an addition to the classic hacker-contest of Capture the Flag, where teams compete to install software and defend a working machine from attackers.
This year, Paul Holman of the Schmoo Group set up the first Capture the Flag bookie service, which lets conference-goers bet on which team will win.
"All these guys are here hacking, and we're in Las Vegas and we need a bookie," Holman said. "So I volunteered."
He wrote a short Filemaker application that keeps track of the bets he's collected and calculates the odds. As of Friday afternoon, it gave the Ghetto Hackers, the 1999 and 2000 champions, odds of 7 to 4.
"These are the best odds in Vegas," Holman said.
Other events planned, before the conference's end on Sunday, include a TCP/IP drinking game, a social engineering contest, a scavenger hunt and the "Black and White" ball -- formal wear strongly encouraged.
