DefCon, the annual confab of hackers, crackers, phreaks, hammies and other assorted computer geeks will take place July 30 to Aug, 1 at the Alexis Park Hotel in Las Vegas.

The event, which was started out as an underground happening 12 years ago has become a mainstream event in recent years. While the first event attracted a relative handful of participants, last year’s gathering was attended by well over 4,000 people, including news media from all over the world. Most of the presentations as well as the press conferences were also streamed live over the internet as well.

In addition to hackers — and the requisite numbers of undercover law enforcement personnel — the event continues to draw corporate people looking to not only learn the latest about network security, but to recruit IT talent.

For information, visit www.defcon.org.