Black Hat MEA 2025 Event Guide

Black Hat MEA 2025 returns to Riyadh as one of the most important cybersecurity gatherings in the world. The event brings together CISOs, security engineers, ethical hackers, vendors, and government leaders who shape how organizations defend against evolving threats. Over three days, attendees move from technical training and live hacking to briefings, CTF competitions, and business hall meetings that turn conversations into real projects.

This guide walks you through what Black Hat MEA is, who attends, what to expect on site, and how to plan your trip so you can make the most of every meeting and session.

What Is Black Hat MEA 2025?

Black Hat MEA (Middle East and Africa) is a three-day cybersecurity conference and exhibition hosted in Riyadh, Saudi Arabia. It is part of the global Black Hat family but tailored to the MEA region, with a strong mix of international speakers and regional leaders.

The event focuses on:

• Offensive and defensive security research
• Real-world case studies from global CISOs
• Open-source tools and live demos
• Hands-on training and hackathons
• A showcase of cybersecurity products, services, and startups

Recent editions have drawn more than 40,000 attendees and hundreds of speakers, exhibitors, and startups, making it one of the most attended cybersecurity events in the world by floor space and audience size.

You can view the Black Hat MEA event listing on Vendelux here: Black Hat MEA 2025 on Vendelux.

When And Where Is Black Hat MEA 2025 Taking Place?

For 2025, Black Hat MEA is scheduled for December 2–4, 2025. The event will take place at the Riyadh Exhibition & Convention Center in Malham, Riyadh, Saudi Arabia.

Event basics

• Dates: December 2–4, 2025
• City: Riyadh, Saudi Arabia
• Venue: Riyadh Exhibition & Convention Center, Malham (often abbreviated as RECC)

The venue is a modern exhibition center built to support large-scale trade shows and conferences, with extensive exhibition halls, meeting rooms, and outdoor space for activations and demos.

Who’s Coming To Black Hat MEA 2025?

Black Hat MEA attracts a deep mix of technical specialists, buyers, and decision makers from across the cybersecurity ecosystem. Past editions have included:

• 40,000+ attendees
• 300+ corporations and vendors
• 500+ CISOs
• 50+ Black Hat trainers
• 150+ briefings and 50+ startups

You can generally expect:

• Enterprise and mid-market security teams
  • CISOs, security architects, SOC leaders, incident response leads
    
• Technical practitioners and ethical hackers
  • Red teamers, penetration testers, bug bounty hunters, malware analysts
    
• Government and critical infrastructure leaders
  • Regulators, public-sector CISOs, national security stakeholders
    
• Vendors and startups
  • Security platforms, managed security services, cloud and identity providers

For context, recent editions have welcomed attendees from more than 150 countries, reinforcing its position as a global hub rather than a regional niche event.

Why This Audience Matters

If you sell cybersecurity products or services, Black Hat MEA compresses months of outbound into a three-day window with highly qualified technical buyers. If you are on the buyer side, it is a rare opportunity to compare approaches, see real demos, and talk directly with product owners and engineering leaders.

Who Will Be Speaking At Black Hat MEA 2025?

The full 2025 speaker list is still evolving, but past editions highlight the level you can expect.

Recent Black Hat MEA programs have included:

• More than 330 speakers
• Keynotes and sessions from global CISOs and executives at Fortune 500 companies
• Government leaders from national security and intelligence communities
• Researchers, ethical hackers, and trainers recognized across the industry

Previous lineups have featured:

• CISOs and security leaders from brands like Huawei, Netflix, Uber, Zoom, and major financial institutions
• Government and law enforcement security leaders speaking on national cyber defense and threat intelligence

Expect a mix of:

• High-level keynotes on strategy and risk
• Deep technical briefings on vulnerabilities, offensive techniques, and defensive patterns
• Panels focused on regulation, AI in security, and talent development

What Kind Of Sponsors And Exhibitions Will There Be?

The exhibition floor at Black Hat MEA is one of its main draws. Recent editions have hosted more than 450 exhibitors across the cybersecurity value chain.

You can expect to see:

• Global security vendors in network, endpoint, cloud, and identity
• Threat intelligence, SIEM, and XDR platforms
• OT and critical infrastructure security providers
• MSSPs and MDR providers
• Startups showcasing niche capabilities and new approaches

Vendors like OPSWAT, NetWitness, and many others have already announced their presence for 2025, highlighting the event’s role as a regional showcase for global brands.

Exhibition Highlights

Key elements on the show floor typically include:

• Business Hall with live demos and product walk-throughs
• Startup and innovation zones highlighting early-stage companies
• National pavilions representing emerging cybersecurity ecosystems across MEA and beyond

What Kind Of Sessions Are There At Black Hat MEA 2025?

Black Hat MEA builds its program around a mix of hands-on training, tactical briefings, and interactive activities.

Core session and program types include:

• Trainings
  Multi-day, deep technical courses led by Black Hat trainers on topics like exploitation, web app security, reverse engineering, cloud security, and incident response.
  
• Briefings
  Research-driven talks that cover new vulnerabilities, tools, detection techniques, and case studies from large organizations.
  
• Arsenal
  An open space where tool authors demo and discuss open-source security tools and frameworks.
  
• Capture The Flag (CTF)
  A large, competitive hacking tournament. The Black Hat MEA CTF has achieved a Guinness World Record as the largest CTF hackathon by participation.
  
• Executive Summit
  Closed-door or invite-only sessions for CISOs and senior leaders to compare strategies, frameworks, and board communication approaches.
  
• Activity Zone and hacking villages
  Labs and villages focused on domains like automotive, IoT, smart cities, OT, industrial systems, and financial services security.

What To Expect From Black Hat MEA 2025 – Is The Event Worth It?

Black Hat MEA positions itself as “cybersecurity’s global stage.” It is one of the few events where you can, in the same day, attend a deep exploit talk, sit with your account team in a private meeting room, and then watch a CTF team tackle complex challenges.

Reasons many teams see strong value:

• High signal-to-noise for security roles
  Attendees are almost entirely focused on cybersecurity, not broad IT.
  
• Real-world problems and architectures
  Talks center on practical threat models, attack surfaces, and defense patterns, rather than generic marketing content.
  
• Strong MEA and global mix
  You meet teams working in Saudi Arabia and the wider Gulf alongside global enterprises and vendors.

If your work touches security architecture, SOC operations, identity, cloud, or application security, Black Hat MEA delivers three dense days of learning, demos, and meetings that can influence your program roadmap for the year.

Why Should You Attend Black Hat MEA 2025?

Different teams attend Black Hat MEA for different reasons, but the core benefits are consistent.

For security leaders and CISOs

• Compare strategies with peers across industries
• Explore vendor roadmaps and product fit in a concentrated setting
• Understand how AI, automation, and regulation are reshaping security programs

For technical practitioners

• Get exposure to new tools, frameworks, and exploitation techniques
• Validate your approaches against those of global experts
• Build relationships with peers you can later tap for support and ideas

For vendors and partners

• Meet high-intent buyers who influence security budgets
• Run live demos that show real workflows instead of slides
• Build pipeline through structured meetings and follow-ups across MEA and beyond

If you are planning your calendar of cybersecurity events, Black Hat MEA belongs in the category of events that directly inform your roadmap, tech stack, and hiring plans.

Leverage Attendee Insights: Who’s Attending And How To Prepare

Before you commit budget and time, it helps to know which accounts and roles will be on site and how they buy.

Using Vendelux, revenue and marketing teams can:

• Upload or build an ICP list and see which accounts are planning to attend
• Identify seniority and function across security, IT, and engineering
• Prioritize regional and global buyers who are already in your pipeline

Black Hat MEA attendees tend to be technical buyers who care about performance, evidence of execution, and operational relevance more than brand polish. They respond to use cases tied to real environments, clear outcomes, and credible references.

How To Use That Insight

• Shape your messaging around specific threat models and architectures
• Prepare environment-specific demos and lab setups
• Plan meetings with clear next steps: pilot, PoC, workshop, or architecture session

Things To Consider Before Registering For Black Hat MEA 2025

Registration details may change as the event approaches, but a few general planning points apply every year.

Pass type

• Training and briefings are often priced separately from expo-only passes at Black Hat events
• Executive-level programs and summits may require specific passes or invitations

Team composition

• Decide early who needs training versus who focuses on meetings and the expo floor
• Align internal goals: architecture review, vendor discovery, hiring, or partnership conversations

Budget

• Factor in travel and hotel pricing around early December in Riyadh
• Include meeting space or sponsored activities if you plan to host customers

Check the official Black Hat MEA site for current pass types and pricing as those are updated closer to the event.

Plan Your Visit To Black Hat MEA 2025 And What To Do After Hours

Riyadh has developed quickly as a hub for major events, and the area around the Riyadh Exhibition & Convention Center is set up to handle large international crowds.

Getting there

• The closest airport is King Khalid International Airport (RUH)
• Taxis and ride-hailing services are the most common way to reach the venue and city hotels

Neighborhoods and areas to explore

• Kingdom Centre and Olaya for shopping, restaurants, and skyline views
• Boulevard City and Riyadh Season entertainment zones during the season period
• Museums and cultural sites that give context on Saudi Arabia’s rapid digital and economic growth

Evening hours are often filled with vendor receptions, invite-only dinners, and side events, so keep your schedule flexible and allow time for informal drinks or coffee with prospects and partners.

Tips When Traveling To Black Hat MEA 2025 + Hotels

Book accommodation early

Demand around major Riyadh events can spike. Look at hotels:

• Along main business corridors like Olaya and King Fahd Road
• Near major malls and mixed-use developments for easier access to dining and informal meeting spots

Check whether shuttle services or dedicated transfers are offered by either the event or your hotel.

What to pack

• Light business attire suitable for conference days
• A light jacket for air-conditioned halls
• Comfortable shoes for walking the expo floor
• A portable charger and local power adapter

Local considerations

• Review local customs and dress codes in advance, especially if it is your first visit to Saudi Arabia
• Plan for prayer times in your meeting schedule, as they can affect venue traffic and restaurant hours

Summary: Careful Planning Helps You Get Full Value From Black Hat MEA 2025

Black Hat MEA 2025 is more than a large cybersecurity show. It is a concentrated environment where global leaders, ethical hackers, and vendors sit in the same rooms and talk through real threats, architectures, and investments. With over 40,000 participants, hundreds of speakers, and a record-breaking CTF, the event has become a key reference point for the MEA security community and the broader industry.

To get the most from your trip:

• Define your goals across learning, vendor review, and meetings
• Use Vendelux to identify the accounts and people you want to meet before you arrive
• Plan your travel, hotel, and after-hours schedule to support real conversations rather than rushing between activities

With the right preparation, Black Hat MEA 2025 can shape your security roadmap, strengthen your partner network, and deliver a full year’s worth of pipeline and insight in three intense days.