More than 2,000 international cybersecurity experts are meeting in Bucharest on November 28 and 29 at the DefCamp regional conference to discuss new challenges and solutions against online threats, the organisers announced on Thursday.

"To support the training of future cybersecurity experts, the organisers of DefCamp, the most important annual hacking and cybersecurity conference in Central and Eastern Europe, are this year emphasising both education and practical application of knowledge in the field," a press release sent to AGERPRES informs.

Thus, DefCamp aims to contribute to enhancing the technical skills of industry professionals and building a strong and well-informed cybersecurity community.

"DefCamp has always been about supporting and growing the cybersecurity community, and this year's edition is no exception. Industry leaders will attend to share valuable knowledge, insights and research, with the goal of supporting current and future professionals and strengthening a global community capable of responding quickly and effectively to the increasingly complex challenges in today's cybersecurity landscape. As the future of cybersecurity also depends to a large extent on training the next generation of professionals, at DefCamp 2024 we will put a strong emphasis on education and hands-on involvement. This year's edition will be much more complex, with expanded activities on the educational side, through a series of workshops and trainings organized before the conference itself, and new opportunities for young people to get in touch with a global cybersecurity community. All these activities complement the presentation sessions by local and international speakers, as well as the competitions at the event on November 28 and 29," said Andrei Avădănei, founder of DefCamp, quoted in the press release.

Nearly 800 teams participated in the qualification phase for DefCamp Capture the Flag (D-CTF), one of the largest cybersecurity and hacking competitions in Central and Eastern Europe. The best up to 15 teams will participate in the final round, which will take place in Bucharest at the DefCamp conference.

The DefCamp 2024 event is organised by the Cyber Security Research Center from Romania (CCSIR).

Since 2011, DefCamp has managed to attract to Bucharest almost 13,000 participants from about 60 countries and over 150 cities, passionate about cybersecurity, ethical hacking, cyber vulnerabilities and interested in developing their technical skills. The conference's audience includes participants from the research and project development area (45%), cybersecurity specialists (30%), top management representatives and decision makers in companies (18%) and students (7%).AGERPRES(RO - author: Cristian Anghelache, editor: Andreea Marinescu; EN - editor: Simona Iacob)