Code of Conduct

We (a bunch of decent enthusiasts, professionals, and frankly human beings) at SecTalks would like to think that it would not be necessary to remind anyone about following a Code of Conduct. However, just in case you are the kind of character that needs to have things set out, here are our guidelines for how we expect attendees to behave. We expect attendees to follow these rules at all SecTalks events.

We are not trying to wrap you all in bubble-wrap here, but if you cannot act like a decent human being for a few hours, then please think twice about coming.

Expected Behaviour

  • Be considerate, respectful, and collaborative.
  • Refrain from demeaning, discriminatory or harassing behaviour, materials and speech.
  • Be mindful of your surroundings and of your fellow attendees. Alert organisers if you notice a dangerous situation or someone in distress.
  • Ask questions. Improve your knowledge. Learn. Encourage those wanting to learn. Teach.

Unacceptable Behaviour and Materials

As we cannot provide a blacklist of behaviour, the following list cannot be considered exhaustive. However, this list presents examples of behaviours and materials that would be considered unacceptable.

  • Intimidating, harassing, abusive, discriminatory, derogatory, or demeaning materials or conduct by any attendees.
  • Offensive comments (verbal, written, or otherwise) related to gender, gender identity and expression, sexual orientation, race, religion, disability, physical appearance, body size, age; inappropriate use of nudity and/or sexual images in public spaces (including presentation slides); deliberate intimidation, stalking or following; harassing materials, photography or recording; sustained disruption of talks or other events; inappropriate physical contact, and unwelcome sexual attention.
  • Physical, written, verbal or other abuse, intimidation, threats, annoyance, harassment, stalking, pushing, shoving or use of any physical force whatsoever against any person, which in any way creates a disturbance that is disruptive or dangerous, or creates apprehension in a person.
  • Committing any unlawful act.
  • Hacking, cracking, breaking, or related activities (if not part of a CTF or you haven’t been given explicit permission), e.g. the following is unacceptable: hacking the CTF scoreboard; DoSing attendees; fiddling with venue gear; picking venue locks; doxing attendees; wifi pineapples; wifi honeypots; dumpster diving; RF jamming.
  • Distribution of:

  • code or binaries that is in contravention with copyright, licensing and EULA;
  • Windows or Microsoft software in any form apart from official MS installers (e.g. a legit upstream .iso or .msi) or where it’s legitimately been freely released (e.g. stuff from https://github.com/Microsoft);
  • Pirated software in any form (e.g. IDA Pro, Burp Pro); or
  • Other materials (e.g. images, PDF’s, documents) that is in contravention with copyright, licensing and EULA unless you can justify fair-use.
  • Failure to obey any rules or regulations of the venue.

Consequence of Unacceptable Behaviour

Unacceptable behaviour will not be tolerated. Anyone asked to stop unacceptable behaviour is expected to comply immediately.

If a participant engages in unacceptable behaviour, the organisers may take any action they deem appropriate, e.g. a verbal warning; expulsion from the venue; and/or pre-emptively banning you from future events.

What to do if you witness or are subjected to unacceptable behaviour>

If you are subjected to unacceptable behaviour, notice that someone else is being subjected to unacceptable behaviour, or have any other concerns, please notify an organiser as soon as possible. Please note, while we take all concerns raised seriously, we will use our discretion to determine when and how to follow up on reported incidents and may decline to take any further action. All concerns will be recorded. All reports will remain completely confidential. SecTalks organisers will be happy to help participants contact local law enforcement, provide escorts, or otherwise assist those experiencing harassment to feel safe for the duration of any event.

We value your attendance.

Scope

We expect all SecTalks attendees to abide by this code of conduct at all event venues.

Thanks to Geek Feminism (http://geekfeminism.wikia.com/wiki/Conference_anti-harassment) for guidance and templates.