A judge dismissed a lawsuit filed by social engineering expert Chris Hadnagy against DEF CON in response to the infosec conference’s decision last year to ban him from future events.
DEF CON announced Friday that Judge Wendy J. Beetlestone dismissed the lawsuit, which had been filed in U.S. District Court of the Eastern District of Pennsylvania. In February 2022, DEF CON organizers announced they had banned Hadnagy for unspecified code of conduct violations. Hadnagy, founder and CEO of Social Engineer, LLC, had spoken at the annual infosec conference several times and was the head of DEF CON’s Social Engineering Village.
Hadnagy repeatedly denied any allegations of misconduct at DEF CON and claimed organizers did not inform him of the specific accusations against him. “DEF CON’s code of conduct addresses harassment and discrimination, and I can say with 100% certainty that no one has ever come to me with accusations of harassment or discrimination — not a single person,” he said in a statement last year.
In response, he filed a lawsuit in August against DEF CON and its founder and organizer Jeff Moss, claiming in part that they had damaged his reputation. However, Judge Beetlestone ruled earlier this month that her court lacked “personal jurisdiction” over the defendants and dismissed the lawsuit before pre-trial discovery. While it was dismissed, Hadnagy can refile the lawsuit in another court.
In its announcement Friday, DEF CON provided additional information that contested some of Hadnagy’s earlier statements. For example, Hadnagy said in a statement last year that “DEF CON has NOT me told what [the accusations] are or presented any evidence to support them.” However, DEF CON said it spoke directly with Hadnagy about his alleged violations of the code of conduct.
“He confirmed his behavior, and agreed to stop,” DEF CON organizers said in the statement, which was also posted on Twitter. “Unfortunately, the behavior did not stop.”
DEF CON also said it wasn’t the only infosec conference to receive complaints about Hadnagy’s behavior. According to the statement, DEF CON’s investigation revealed that “Black Hat [USA] received complaints, conducted their own investigation and removed Mr. Hadnagy from their Review Board.”
Black Hat did not publicly announce Hadnagy’s removal from the review board last year or detail any complaints against the social engineering expert. Last February, Hadnagy was asked on Twitter why he was no longer listed as a member of the Black Hat Review Board.
“The way the internet blew up after Jeff’s announcement they felt it was best I stepped away from BH,” Hadnagy replied on Twitter. “No reason to bring that heat to their doors.”
It’s unclear why Hadnagy was removed from the Black Hat Review Board. TechTarget Editorial contacted Black Hat for comment on DEF CON’s claims but Black Hat organizers had not responded at press time.
TechTarget Editorial contacted Hadnagy for comment on the dismissal of his lawsuit and on DEF CON’s statement, but he had not responded at press time.
