Unofficial Badges Get Official Recognition at DEF CON: Badge Life Contest

Badge·Life (noun): the artwork of spending an excessive amount of time, power, cash, and creativity to design and produce wonderful customized electronics and get them into the arms of those that respect unbelievable craftsmanship.

Model new to DEF CON 26 is the Badge Life Contest to have fun the creativity and ingenuity that will get poured right into a customized badge.

For years, #BadgeLife has been flying beneath the radar at DEF CON. A rising motion of artistic designers have put in late nights, emptied pocket books, and agonized over manufacturing, delivery, lanyards, packing containers, batteries, programming woes, and each different form of downside you may picture to deliver a whole bunch of unofficial badges to the convention. These aren’t a secret, the entire level is to put on blinky badges, typically loaded with cryptographic puzzles and wi-fi interactivity, round your neck. For a lot of, buying an superior badge is a must-do to make their con a profitable one. However DEF CON hasn’t formally acknowledged BadgeLife, till now.

When you’re a badge creator, it's best to exhibit your badge as a part of the competition. It’s a chance to let extra individuals see all the main points that make every badge a murals. Through the con, most individuals will solely see badges as they stroll previous them within the hallway. For the competition, all badges will probably be on show within the {Hardware} Hacking Village throughout the weekend to offer an in depth search for everybody.

The judging panel for that is an unbelievable slate of proficient and well-known individuals from the {hardware} group. It doesn’t appear to be these names have been made public but, however I’m honored and humbled to be amongst them. Assist kick this inaugural 12 months of the Badge Life Contest off proper. You'll be able to submit your badge data now and ship one badge (which will probably be returned to you) for show by 5 pm PDT on Friday 8/10.