Q&A: SOURCE Conference
Stacy Thayer is the Founder and Executive Director of SOURCE Conferences. Prior to founding SOURCE Conferences, Stacy was employed for a Fortune 500 company, where she worked with other organizations to examine best practices in professional development and training. In this interview she discusses SOURCE Conference.
Introduce the SOURCE Conference to our readers.
SOURCE Conference is a security conference based in Boston (Spring) and Barcelona (Fall). The purpose of SOURCE Conference is to bridge the gap between technical excellence and business insight within the security industry. In addition to presenting top industry professionals at our events, we have a Security Start-up Competition where security entrepreneurs can compete for a cash prize, a Mentor Program where students and junior professionals get one-on-one meetings with our speakers and experts, a lock-picking village as well as networking receptions and parties.
SOURCE fosters a learning community where security experts gather to gain knowledge and skills, network with peers, and advance their careers. SOURCE enables individuals, teams, and organizations to leverage information to improve decision-making, optimize performance, and achieve technical and business objectives.
How will Source Boston 2010 differ from previous years?
This year we will launch the SOURCE Boston Mentor Program, the Security Start-up Competition, and we will have a lock-picking village and demo site. We will also be adding a two session workshop that will focus on Anti-Virus Product Testing. We have also aligned the conference with the Boston B-Sides, a free security event, happening the weekend after SOURCE.
What topics will your speakers focus on? What’s “hot” this year?
PCI and compliance are very popular, along with cloud security and hardware security. Reverse engineering continues to be popular as well as a focus on application security topics.
There are many quality information security events all over the world. In your opinion, what makes Source unique in comparison to other conferences?
SOURCE is the first and only conference to focus on combining advanced technology and security practices with the business of security. Our expert team of advisors has deep roots in the security industry and identified a gap between the security industry’s requirement of superior technical skills and the need to possess business acumen to build a career or a company.
We offer unparalleled access to our speakers and experts. The SOURCE mentor program allows students and junior professionals to be matched with our speakers and advisors. No other conference offers that kind of access to experts like HD Moore, Val Smith, or Dr. Anton Chuvakin.
What are the main differences between Source Boston and Source Barcelona?
Boston is our headquarters and premier event. SOURCE Boston offers an exhibit hall for our sponsoring organizations, the Security Start-up Competition, and a broader range of topics. SOURCE Barcelona is a more intimate and focused experience that features technology and business. SOURCE Barcelona is unique because it is held in the lecture halls of the Museu Nacional d’Art de Catalunya on top of Montjuic, offering amazing views of the entire city.