Is hacking starting to lose its culture? Though black clothing still dominated and clusters of hackers exchanging information was still the norm, the crowd at this year's Def Con was older and appeared to be far more professional. "It is more laid back this year," acknowledged Jeff Moss, the founder of the conference, now in its ninth year.. . .
Is hacking starting to lose its culture? Though black clothing still dominated and clusters of hackers exchanging information was still the norm, the crowd at this year's Def Con was older and appeared to be far more professional. "It is more laid back this year," acknowledged Jeff Moss, the founder of the conference, now in its ninth year.

"It is more a reflection of what is going on in the hacking community."

While the hacking counterculture was still in attendance, its members seemed in the minority at the gathering of 4,500-plus people. Professional security consultants made up a large percentage, and law-enforcement and military officers padded out the majority.

"It is becoming more white-hattish," Moss confirmed, referring to the practice of denoting malicious hackers as "black hats" and security-conscious hackers as "white hats."

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