1. Purpose & Core Philosophy
Our conference was built to bring together people who have a curiosity and passion for information security. We strive to create an environment that allows for respectful discourse, constructive debate, open sharing, and positive interactions while facilitating a safe and secure setting for those activities.
Our fundamental guideline is simple: Be excellent to each other.
This Code of Conduct applies equally to all participants—including attendees, speakers, sponsors, vendors, volunteers, and staff. Nobody is exempt. This policy governs all physical conference spaces, training rooms, villages, social events, after-parties, and associated digital platforms (e.g., Discord and social media).
2. Expected Behavior
- Show Respect: Exercise consideration, empathy, and kindness in your actions and speech.
- Prioritize Consent: Practice explicit, active consent across all interactions. You must ask for and receive permission before taking photos or videos of individuals, touching another person, or engaging in personal or physical boundary-crossing interactions. No means no, and a lack of a clear “yes” also means no.
- Assume Positive Intent: Seek clarification during technical or academic discussions where misinterpretation is possible before escalating to a conflict.
- Contribute to Collective Safety: Be mindful of your surroundings and look out for your fellow participants. If you see a problem, notice a dangerous situation, or someone else seems uncomfortable or distressed, check on them directly or loop in a staff member.
3. Unacceptable Behavior
We maintain a zero-tolerance policy for behaviors that threaten human safety, dignity, or individual privacy. Unacceptable conduct includes, but is not limited to:
A. Harassment & Intimidation
- Offensive Speech: Verbal or written comments that reinforce social structures of domination, or degrading jokes related to gender, sexual orientation, disability, physical appearance, race, age, religion, or technical skillset.
- Stalking: Deliberate intimidation, physical stalking, or covertly following another person.
- Unwelcome Boundary Crossing: Inappropriate physical contact, use of sexualized imagery/language in public spaces, and unwelcome sexual attention.
B. Privacy & Security Violations
- Doxxing: The disclosure of a private person’s personal identity or publishing someone else’s private data (such as a physical or email address) without their explicit, prior permission.
- Non-Consensual Media: Harassing photography or recording. If an attendee asks you to delete or blur an image/video featuring them, you must comply immediately.
- Keep Content Lawful: Do not formally present or distribute legally classified data or stolen trade secrets during scheduled tracks. Attendees are entirely responsible for their own presentation content.
C. Disruptions & Property Damage
- Heckling: Sustained or willful disruption of talks, panels, or workshops. Asking respectful questions to gain clarity or debate a point is highly encouraged; haranguing or shouting down a speaker is forbidden.
- Facility Tampering: Unauthorized tampering with physical venue property or infrastructure. (Remember: Hack the challenges, not the stuff.)
4. Enforcement & Consequences
If a participant is asked by an organizer or staff member to stop a behavior, they are expected to comply immediately.
Interpretation of this code and the response to violations rests solely with the internal Event Operations / Management Team. If a participant engages in unacceptable behavior, organizers may take any action they deem appropriate, scaled to the offense, including:
- A formal, documented warning.
- A requirement to delete non-consensual photography/media.
- Immediate removal from the venue and revocation of the event badge without a refund.
- A permanent ban from all future events hosted by this organization.
5. How to Report an Incident
If you experience harassment, notice that someone else is being harassed, or have any other immediate concerns, please locate a conference staff member right away.
- On-Site Support: Look for clearly marked badges. You can also report directly to the Main Registration Desk, or speak with someone at any of the villages.
- Digital Reporting: You can submit a digital report via email at board@bsidesmemphis.org, or ping us on our official event Discord server.
All reports are taken seriously, handled discreetly, and investigated thoroughly by our team internally.