In recent years, journalists from the New York Times to the Wall Street Journal have called Denver the “Next Silicon Valley” when reporting about the rise of technology startups that has taken place in the Mile High City.
The truth is that Denver’s technology ecosystem has been growing and maturing for most of the past decade. MapQuest and Photobucket have deep roots in Denver. And then there’s ParkiFi, an IoT start-up recently purchased by Dish Network, whose app transmits data between sensor-enabled cars and a proprietary network to help drivers find a parking space.
Network routing, the IoT, and DDoS protection are just some of the topics that will be on tap in Denver at NANOG 73, a meeting of the North American Network Operators’ Group (NANOG), taking place June 25-27. NANOG is an association of internet engineering, architecture and operations professionals focused on the continuous improvement of data transmission technologies and practices. NANOG 73, sponsored by CoreSite, will provide attendees with three full days of educational and networking opportunities, and its complete agenda can be viewed by clicking here.
Over Two Billion Served
Ever wonder what it’s like to oversee a global network that serves more than two billion people around the world? Then you won’t want to miss the NANOG 73 keynote address by Najam Ahmed, Vice President of Network Engineering at Facebook, on Monday, June 25. Following the keynote presentation, NANOG’s new Executive Director, Edward McNair, will be formally introduced to the association. The Peering Coordination Forum, which provide attendees with the opportunity to meet and network with others in the peering community, will close out day one’s sessions.
NANOG 73 will continue on Tuesday, June 26, featuring presentations covering a broad range of subject matter, including Ethernet Virtual Private Network (EVPN), multi-cloud strategies and network routing risks. Then on Wednesday, June 27, attendees will have the opportunity to learn about memcached amplification and enhancing DDoS protection with BGP flowspec. According to a recent report by Kaspersky, 32 percent of serious DDoS attacks last year coincided with a network intrusion, making this a topic that is sure to be top-of-mind for many network operations professionals.
Sponsorship, the Backbone of NANOG
NANOG, a non-profit, engineering, educational and operational forum for the coordination of network operations in North America, relies upon the support of its sponsors to produce its tri-annual conferences and ongoing communications. Just recently, NANOG announced the return of five annual Premium Sponsors, including Netflix, NTT Communications, Microsoft, Google and Verisign, and welcomed three new annual Premium Sponsors, including Cyxtera, Imperva and Oracle. More than 40 individual sponsors support NANOG 73 and turnout is expected to exceed 1,000 attendees.
“I’d like to extend our gratitude to our generous sponsors, the driving force of our organization, without whom NANOG would not be possible,” recently commented NANOG Executive Director, Edward McNair. “NANOG’s mission is to enable the ongoing development of an open and secure internet by providing a platform that inspires, educates and empowers members of the networking community. We look forward to gathering in Denver to learn from and network with our industry colleagues as we explore the trends that are defining the current and future state of the internet.”
Smart Devices, Secure Users
On Sunday, June 24, prior to the main conference, network operators will gather for the NANOG 73 Hackathon. This edition of the Hackathon is focused on the cybersecurity measures network operators can employ to prevent hackers from taking control of IoT devices.
Remember that smart parking space app? Let’s say it suddenly goes offline because of a network intrusion. Okay, so you just might have to drive around the block again. But what if it’s something more important to public safety such as smart traffic lights or utilities. According to Nokia, by 2020, utility companies will be managing more than 1.5 billion IoT devices.
The NANOG Hackathon will explore and demonstrate new ways to use existing systems in networks to defend against different types of attacks. Participants will interact with security experts from Hackathon sponsor Juniper Networks and across the NANOG community. At the end of Hackathon day, participants will briefly share their ideas and vote for the top teams, who then will present their winning hacks during the NANOG 73 general session. All hacker skill levels are welcome to participate.
A Culture of Interconnecting Knowledge and Ideas
NANOG membership is available to anyone with an interest in internet operations, engineering or research who wants to further education and knowledge-sharing. The association’s members are typically drawn from the core engineering and product staffs of major North American carriers, content providers, hosting and cloud companies, multi-tenant data centers and interconnection service providers.
If you wish to register to attend NANOG 73, click here. To register for the Hackathon at NANOG 73, click here. Media professionals who wish to attend NANOG 73 are welcome free of charge. Email sponsor-support@nanog.org, to apply for a complementary press pass.
For more information about NANOG, please visit www.nanog.org.
