Black Hat is gearing up to bring together the top minds in information security to Riyadh this November, as part of an iconic 3-day event. Taking place from the 15 to 17 of November at the Riyadh Front Exhibition Center, Black Hat MEA is set to welcome 30,000 visitors to Riyadh, making it the largest cybersecurity event in the region while featuring the most powerful speaker lineup of any technology show in its first edition.

Following the success of @Hack, Black Hat MEA will host over 250 exhibitors and more than 200 speakers this year. The event will also host international tech giants including Cisco, IBM, Spire, Infoblox, and more. The event is the result of the partnership between the Saudi Federation of Cybersecurity, Programming, and Drones (SAFCSP) and Informa Markets, the largest events company in the world. This strategic partnership highlights the Kingdom’s investments and growth in cybersecurity and the digital space while being a testament to the adaptation of modern technology in the region.

“@hack set the bar for cybersecurity events across the region in 2021, surpassing our expectations across all measures. This success reflects Saudi’s position as a growing center of global cybersecurity excellence & the global ecosystem’s confidence and curiosity in what we are building from the grassroots up” said Faisal Al-Khamisi, Chairman, SAFCSP. “The credibility of evolving @hack to Black Hat MEA is a powerful indicator of our intentions within the cybersecurity space. This partnership will spark innovation, supercharge our capacity building and develop investment opportunities which we are excited to share with the world in November”

“IBM recently reported that a data breach in 2022 can cost a company an average of USD 4.35 million. This cost is at its all-time highest now and sits at a 12.7% increase from 2020. In today’s digitally powered world, this is an alarming situation for all of us, but especially for those who are not aware of nor possess the tools needed to protect their sensitive data. This is where Black Hat MEA comes in and cements its position as a must-attend event to generate awareness, create understanding around the importance of cybersecurity and educate on how to safely use tomorrow’s digital space to its maximum potential.”

Mike Champion, Regional Executive Vice President of Informa Markets, added: “Last year we launched the largest infosec show of 2021, worldwide. This year, it’s grown even more – more than 25,000 visitors have seen it with their own eyes, there’s now only one event that gives you so many elite hackers and CISO speakers, so large a community, such a variety of hacking tools, so much prize money, such a big buzz – and that’s Black Hat MEA in Riyadh.”

Event attendees will get the chance to hear testimonies about cybersecurity and its implications from an exciting line-up of world-renowned speakers from leading companies including CISOs of Equifax, Boom Supersonic, and Lufthansa; Jamil Farshchi, Chris Roberts, and Naby Diaw respectively, as well as Dr. Alissa Abdullah (Dr. Jay), Deputy Chief Security Officer, Mastercard, Ira Winkler, Chief Security Architect, Walmart and Timothy Brown, VP & Global Chief Information Security Officer, SolarWinds among others. The event will also welcome David Colombo, CEO of Colombo Technology, and the teen tech genius, the world-renowned cyber security expert who hacked into Tesla cars. The show will also be home to demonstrations and product launches of the latest cutting-edge security solutions, from across all areas of the industry including software, services, and training.

Black Hat MEA will also feature several different themes and tracks to cater to the diverse audience, including

• Training – 23 bespoke training sessions by 30 Black Hat-approved trainers in a hands-on environment with training partners like Offensive Security, we45, Orange Cyberdefense and Madiant
• Executive Summit: The exclusive conference with over 200 senior leaders in information security, including CISOs and senior decision makers in charge of influencing and implementing security strategies.
• Arsenal – A developer space where the latest open-source tools and products are showcased by developers along with hands-on experience.
• Briefings – Where infosec experts present research on industry trends, hacking tools, and security vulnerabilities.
• Capture The Flag – a jeopardy-style hacking tournament for over 1,000 participants to enhance their ethical hacking skills at different difficulty levels for a SAR 700,000 prize fund.

Other competitions include the Bug Bounty Cup with a prize fund of SAR 300,000, a Start-Up competition where the top pitches present to seasoned judges, angel investors, tech experts, and government stakeholders for a cash prize of SAR 90,000. The event will also host a merchandise design competition for talented and unique digital artists who can create artwork exclusively for the Black Hat MEA Cyber Heroes. The winning design will also be printed as a limited collection.

Sitecore has announced Emmy-nominated writer, producer, New York Times best-selling author, director and actor, Mindy Kaling, to speak live from the Sitecore Symposium stage. The event will be held at McCormick Place Convention Center in Chicago, October 17-20.

Author Azeem Azhar will also be a guest keynote speaker at the event. A breakthrough thinker on the impact of technologies on society, Azhar is both a practitioner and analyst. He is an active investor and entrepreneur in the technology field and an author and producer of a highly-renowned newsletter and podcast, Exponential View.

During Sitecore Symposium, attendees will also hear from Sitecore customers about their digital journey successes, including Mercedes-Benz, General Mills, L’Oréal, Emirates NBD, INEOS, and United Airlines, among many others, as well as from key Sitecore Executives, including Sitecore CEO, Steve Tzikakis.

“Along with many of the marketers I have spoken to, I am excited to get back to an in-person event where we can share ideas face-to-face with our customers, partners, and the Sitecore community,” said Paige O’Neill, CMO, Sitecore. “We have a fantastic lineup of customer speakers, thought leadership sessions, and partner showcases among many other activities and I couldn’t be more excited to announce Mindy Kaling to our rich Symposium agenda. Her wealth of experience connecting with audiences through writing, directing, acting, and producing will be of interest to our community of marketers who are always looking for unique ways to tell stories that engage their customers.”

Nozomi Networks, the leader in operational technology (OT) and Internet of Things (IoT) security, is confirming its active participation at the forthcoming MENA Information Security Conference 2022 (MENA ISC). The 10^th edition of the event will primarily focus on critical network infrastructure IT, OT, and IoT, and will be held from September 6-7 at the Hilton Riyadh Hotel and Residences in Saudi Arabia.

Nozomi Networks will highlight its rich portfolio of leading security solutions and the benefits they offer to critical infrastructure owners/operators, as the threat landscape evolves and becomes more challenging. Leveraging its vast knowledge of OT environments (oil & gas, electricity distribution, etc), Nozomi Networks is well placed to advise and develop protection around IoT and IT environments, particularly as the convergence of OT, IoT and IT becomes more commonplace within a growing array of critical infrastructure.

Smart cities, smart grids, smart manufacturing, and smart healthcare are all verticals that leverage IoT platforms and IT integration to not only reduce costs but respond faster and more efficiently to market and user demands. These verticals, and several others, are growing at a rapid pace in the Kingdom, as the country strives to diversify its economy away from fossil fuels in line with the Saudi Vision 2030 strategic framework. Concurrently, the threat landscape is evolving at a breakneck pace, which means securing all manners of digital environments is absolutely critical.

Nozomi Networks’ Osamah Al-Fardan, Regional Sales Engineer, Saudi Arabia, and Usamah Al Ridwan, Regional Sales Director, Saudi Arabia will present a technical workshop at 10am on Day 2 of the event (7 September) on “ICS Cybersecurity between Regulation & Reality”. Nozomi Networks’ participation is in support of the Kingdom’s ambitions to embrace technology and digital transformation, as part of larger efforts to diversify its economy in line with the Saudi Vision 2030 strategic framework.

“Today, within any environment, whether it’s an airport, construction site, factory, hospital, shopping mall, smart home, etc, there are connected devices as part of converged OT, IoT, or IT platforms that could be compromised and turned into a threat against that environment or others. More often than not, even if you are aware of the devices you can see, there may be countless others that you don’t, which can be compromised by threat actors. We are here to give owners and operators the benefit of our experience with what they see and what they don’t, to ensure they have the best protection going forward,” said Usamah Al Ridwan, Regional Sales Director, Saudi Arabia, Nozomi Networks.

In support of the diversification drive, in recent years Saudi authorities have sought to create a suitable ecosystem to attract and stimulate investment in the Kingdom, and have stepped up their focus on cybersecurity. In October 2017, the National Cybersecurity Authority (NCA) was launched; it works closely with public and private entities to improve the cybersecurity posture of the country in order to safeguard its key interests, national security, critical infrastructure, high-priority sectors, and government services in alignment with Vision 2030.

Earlier in 2022, the NCA urged cybersecurity providers to register their information before August 1 in an effort to regulate the sector and improve efficiency and the quality of service offered to those in need of cybersecurity solutions. In the past, the authority has also urged and mandated that businesses, developers, and operators in the Kingdom take steps to mitigate risk, enhance resilience, and develop human capital and local industry capabilities.

During the two-day conference, senior executives and cybersecurity experts from Nozomi Networks will be on hand to interact with visitors and have strategic discussions on critical infrastructure cybersecurity, IT, OT, and IoT, and how organisations can develop and adapt their security frameworks to address any and all threats.