The morning started with Jeff Moss kicking off the conference, and introducing two keynote speakers. This was a first for Black Hat, and I am not sure I like the format. While it does give attendees the option of listening to the one that interests them the most, I felt like I was missing something important being said at the other keynote. The same thing can be said about the multiple tracks, but keynotes are a higher standard, and quite different type of talk. Yes, you can order the videos and watch it later, but you wouldn’t be able to feel the energy from the speaker, which I feel is an important factor on keynotes.
Richard Clarke talked about digital security in 2017, mainly referencing material from his book Breakpoint. The keynote was good, as he brought up many interesting points, and I enjoyed his comments about the current state of our government.
Tony Sager talked about the information assurance directorate within the National Security Agency. Since I attended Richard Clarke’s keynote, I was not able to hear was Tony had to say, but I heard that it was also very good.