DEF CON Middle East 2026 in Bahrain has been postponed — new dates TBD. Planned dates, training topics, courses and pricing inside.
Postponed
DEF CON Middle East 2026, originally scheduled for November 11–12 at Exhibition World Bahrain in Manama, has been postponed. The organizers cited the evolving security situation in the region as the reason. New dates will be announced on defcon.org.
What was planned
DEF CON Middle East would have brought the full DEF CON experience to Bahrain for the first time — talks, villages, live demos and CTF competitions — building on the successful mini-conference at the Arab International Cybersecurity Conference in 2025.
Dates & venue
Conference: November 11–12, 2026 (postponed)
Trainings: November 8–10, 2026
Venue: Exhibition World Bahrain, Manama
Training topics
The planned DEF CON Training track covered the region's most in-demand security skills:
- AI & LLM security — attacking and defending AI systems, MCP, RAG and AI agents
- Cloud-native & Kubernetes defense
- Cloud penetration testing (certification)
- Malware analysis & memory forensics
- Breach & adversarial attack simulation
- Dark web investigations
- Cryptocurrency security
- AI risk assurance & governance for the GCC
Training courses & pricing
Prices were listed in Bahraini dinars (BHD):
- Attacking & Defending AI Systems (AIGoat) — 1,200 BD
- Mastering Breach & Adversarial Attack Simulation — 1,200 BD
- Hands-On Hacking Fundamentals — 1,200 BD
- Defending Kubernetes & Cloud-Native Infrastructure — 1,000 BD
- Certified Cloud Penetration Tester — 1,200 BD
- Applied AI Security: Attacking and Defending LLMs — 800 BD
- Deep Dive into the Dark Web — 800 BD
Note: some courses were restricted to government entities and GCC participants.
Why attend (once new dates land)
- Hands-on training from DEF CON's world-class instructors
- Networking with the regional and global hacker community
- Live demos, villages and CTF contests
- Cutting-edge offensive and defensive techniques
Who should attend
Security researchers, penetration testers, SOC analysts, developers, and security leaders from the Middle East and beyond.
Registration
New dates and registration will be announced at defcon.org and training.defcon.org.
