Episode: 4006
Title: HPR4006: Holiday Challenges Ep 3 SANS Holiday Hack Challenge and KringleCon
Source: https://hub.hackerpublicradio.org/ccdn.php?filename=/eps/hpr4006/hpr4006.mp3
Transcribed: 2025-10-25 18:31:52

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This is Hacker Public Radio Episode 4,06 from Monday the 11th of December 2023.
Today's show is entitled, Holiday Challenges at Three Sands Holiday Hack Challenge in
Kringlekin.
It is hosted by Trey and is about three minutes long.
It carries a clean flag.
The summary is, discussing the Sands Holiday Hack Challenge in Kringlekin to help you
enjoy the holiday season.
Hello and welcome to the final episode of my Holiday Challenges series.
This is Episode 3 discussing the Sands Holiday Hack Challenge with Kringlekin.
Since some of the information you are about to hear is time specific, I want to let you
know that I am recording this near the end of November in 2023.
If you missed the first episode, which introduces this series, you can go back and listen
to HPR Episode 39.96.
The Sands Holiday Hack Challenge is an interactive online technology and hacking game combined
with a virtual security conference, beginning in the second week of December.
By the time this episode drops, it may already be live.
You can tour the North Pole's conference facilities, meeting people, interactive
non-player characters, and maybe even some villains from previous holiday hack challenges.
You can solve problems and gather clues which you use to help you save Christmas.
Everything can be done from within the browser.
And did I mention there is a virtual security conference called Kringlekin, some of the
biggest rock stars, and honestly most humble and brilliant people in cybersecurity each
year speak at Kringlekin.
Many of their talks also provide clues to solving game challenges.
Ed Scotus and his team, the same people who build Sands Net Wars, worked tirelessly
year after year to create the most amazing experience, complete with custom music.
This has become one of my favorite holiday traditions each year.
You can learn more about the 2023 challenge by watching Ed's Inside Sands Holiday Hack
Challenge 2023 YouTube video at the link in the show notes.
You can also access this year's challenge by visiting sands.org slash holiday hack,
that's all one word, or by visiting an additional link in the show notes.
There you will learn more about all things holiday hack before the game opens in the
second week of December.
If you want to play now, or just get a feel for it, you can access three of the previous
years challenges right now at the same site.
Note, I am not associated with Sands or the holiday hack challenge in any way other than
to have participated for several years now, and I have watched other people learn and
grow by taking part in it.
I hope that you have enjoyed this short series.
If there are other online challenges you find interesting or informative, I encourage
you to record a show about them.
Have a wonderful day.
You have been listening to Hacker Public Radio at Hacker Public Radio does work.
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On the Satellite status, today's show is released under Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 International
License.