Much Welcome. Such Rules. Very Wow.

[amatwyshyn]

(Yes, the U.S. Federal Trade Commission is running a contest at DEF CON. http://www.ftc.gov/about-ftc)

ATTENTION HACKER PEOPLES:

Help the FTC zap robocallers by participating in these three contests at DEF CON 22 in Las Vegas, NV, August 7-10, 2014.

Creator: Build a robocall honeypot by Friday, 8/8, at noon PDT <-- already underway!

Attacker: Identify a honeypot’s security vulnerabilities by Saturday, 8/9, at noon PDT

Detective: Analyze data from an existing robocall honeypot by Saturday, 8/9, at 7 pm PDT

$17,000 in Total Cash Prizes.

Complete rules: http://www.ftc.gov/zapping-rachel <--please review carefully


See you at con! Even if you don't have time to participate (though PRETTY PLEASE PARTICIPATE IN AT LEAST ONE!), stop by the FTC table and say hi to us (or we will be very sad panda).

[amatwyshyn]

Re: Much Welcome. Such Rules. Very Wow.

Q: "Where will the Zapping Rachel table be located at DEF CON?"

A: We'll be in the main contest area near the stage on the right side.

[amatwyshyn]

Re: Much Welcome. Such Rules. Very Wow.

Q: "How do we register to participate? Can we start now?"

A: Yes! You can absolutely start working on building your honeypot for contest 1 now in advance of the con. But, in order to officially submit your entry for judging, we need you to sign in with us at the FTC's Zapping Rachel table in the contest area. Someone will be at the table the whole time the contest area is open in order to sign you in and to answer any questions you may have about the contest (or about the FTC).

[amatwyshyn]

Re: Much Welcome. Such Rules. Very Wow.

Q: "What are the judging criteria? Who are the judges? Are they clueful?"

A: The judging criteria differ contest to contest and are set forth here: http://www.ftc.gov/zapping-rachel/criteria. The judges are uber clueful experts. http://www.ftc.gov/zapping-rachel/judges

[amatwyshyn]

Re: Much Welcome. Such Rules. Very Wow.

Q: "Is the FTC serious about using the best tech tools to fight robocalls?"

A: Stone. Cold. Serious. That's why we're at DEF CON. Robocalls are a big problem for a lot of people, and robocallers are becoming more sophisticated. We've been working on these issues for a while: http://www.consumer.ftc.gov/articles...ll-action-plan

[amatwyshyn]

Re: Much Welcome. Such Rules. Very Wow.

Q: "Is there an FAQ?"

A: We can haz FAQ. http://www.ftc.gov/zapping-rachel/faqs

[amatwyshyn]

Re: Much Welcome. Such Rules. Very Wow.

Q: "Are you guys DEF CON n00bs?"

A: This is the first time the Federal Trade Commission has run a contest at DEF CON. But, one of our FTC contest team members has been going to DEF CON for 10+ years -- since the glorious Alexis Park days of no aircon and ample tentage.

[amatwyshyn]

Re: Much Welcome. Such Rules. Very Wow.

Q: "Are you using The Twitters to make announcements?"

A: Yes, we have been tweeting about the contest for a while now and will continue to tweet actively during the next week and DEF CON. @FTC will tell you about all important contest info. It's your best source of timely updates.

[astcell]

Re: Much Welcome. Such Rules. Very Wow.

Anyone see the movie "Real Genius"? Is all this for the LEGIT government?

[hackajar]

Re: Much Welcome. Such Rules. Very Wow.

Anyone see the movie "Real Genius"? Is all this for the LEGIT government?

I personally have vetted this contest. The U.S. Federal Trade Commission is running this contest.

[amatwyshyn]

Re: Much Welcome. Such Rules. Very Wow.

Anyone see the movie "Real Genius"? Is all this for the LEGIT government?

We are real and the prizes are extra real. (Google Zapping Rachel and FTC.)

But why not stop by our table and check us out? We will tell you *ALL* about the FTC and give you a swanky sticker.

Participate in our contests!!

[amatwyshyn]

Re: Much Welcome. Such Rules. Very Wow.

Q: "Do you have patches for contestants?"

A: Yes! We have STICKERS for everyone (while supplies last) https://twitter.com/amatwyshyn/statu...67734904717312 and PATCHES for our contestants. They are neato, and the only way to get a patch is to *participate*!

[amatwyshyn]

Re: Much Welcome. Such Rules. Very Wow.

Q: "I hate stickers (and fun). Is there a dead tree thumbnail version of the contest info for me to clutch tightly and/or give to a friend?"

A: Why yes, yes there is. How about a small paper handout with a picture of a scary cyborg alien robocaller insect that needs zapping? We have those too! https://twitter.com/FTC/status/497382328209915904 Stop by the table! Participate!

[amatwyshyn]

Re: Much Welcome. Such Rules. Very Wow.

Q: "I have been reading about the many FTC enforcement actions against various scammers on the FTC website and have composed a list of my top 48 multi-part questions about the work of the FTC. Is now a good time?"

A: Yes! Now is absolutely the perfect time. Come on over! Ask all the questions. We also have handy fliers about the work of the FTC for you to take away and come up with more questions for us for tomorrow.

[amatwyshyn]

Re: Much Welcome. Such Rules. Very Wow.

Q: "I hear the FTC does infosec enforcement. Is that true? Have there been many FTC security-related enforcement actions?"

A: Yes, absolutely true. The FTC cares about false, deceptive and unfair corporate practices in data security in addition to the robocall scammers that bring us to DEF CON with this contest. You can read about the 50+ FTC data security enforcement actions here: http://www.business.ftc.gov/legal-resources/29/35