The BlueHat Prize Survey at BlackHat – Submit Security Defense Questions for a Chance to Win $5000

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Handle:
k8e

IRL:
Katie Moussouris

Rank:
Senior Security Strategist Lead, Head of Microsoft’s Security Community and Strategy Team

Likes:
Cool vulns, BlueHat, soldering irons, quantum teleportation

Dislikes:
Rudeness, socks-n-sandals, licorice

 

As we inch closer to Black Hat in Vegas this year, we wanted to kick off the ten-day countdown to our first BlueHat Prize contest winners’ announcement with an invitation to those attending Black Hat. Microsoft is conducting a survey at our Black Hat booth to find out what the security community thinks are the most important industry-wide security issues that need answers. When
you participate in the survey at our booth, we’ll enter you into our BlueHat Prize Question Sweepstakes for a chance to win $5,000 USD*!

We will give away $5,000 twice per day at random drawings at our booth On July 25 and July 26, – once around lunch and once at the end of each day, for a total of $20,000 USD in cash.

The official rules are found here, but here are some highlights:

• The only way to enter this contest is to visit the Microsoft booth in person at Black Hat and submit a question.
• Only one entry per person is allowed (we’ll scan your conference badge, so no funny business!).
• Valid entries in the sweepstakes must be a defense-oriented security question that could potentially be used in a future BlueHat Prize contest.
• The issue you submit should be industry-wide, e.g., “Design a defense technology or strategy to defend against social engineering.” or “What would be the best approach to defend against DDoS?”

While we may not use the specific defense-oriented questions gathered in this sweepstakes, the survey will help us shape a future BlueHat Prize contest with the input from the broader security community. We know not everyone makes it to Black Hat, but we do think there is a decent sampling of various security industry representatives there, so as a survey it works as a
decent sample set. If you’d like to let your thoughts be heard, even if you are not at Black Hat, feel free to join the conversation on Twitter with the hashtag #BlueHatPrize.

As for when we will announce what the next BlueHat Prize contest will be, stay tuned for that news on this blog after Black Hat. For those of you attending Black Hat in person this year, start thinking about what you believe is the biggest industry-wide security issue that needs a great defense. Microsoft may use your idea in our next BlueHat Prize contest, and you might
win $5000!

Katie Moussouris

Senior Security Strategist, MSRC

*No Purchase Necessary. Open only to registered event attendees 14+.Game ends 7/26/12. For additional details, see Official Rules posted on-site at the Microsoft booth .