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Vincenzo Iozzo, founder/CEO of identity security startup SlashID and a long-time member of the Black Hat review board, was removed from Black Hat’s and Japan’s Code Blue conference review board listings after newly released U.S. Justice Department materials from the Jeffrey Epstein investigation surfaced extensive references to him. Reporting said Iozzo’s name appeared in 2,300+ mentions across released documents, including emails describing interactions with Epstein from 2014–2018, and an FBI informant report that referenced Epstein having a “personal hacker,” with redactions that were reported to strongly suggest Iozzo.
Iozzo said he did not resign voluntarily, stated he welcomed a “full investigation,” and denied illegal activity, characterizing his interactions with Epstein as limited to business discussions. Black Hat did not comment on the removal, while Code Blue confirmed he was removed and attributed it to a planned update to remove inactive members, though the timing coincided with the document release and resulting scrutiny.
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Code Blue confirmed that Vincenzo Iozzo was removed from its review board, saying the change coincided with the Epstein document release but had been planned for months as part of an update removing inactive members. The conference said two other inactive members were also removed.
Shortly after the DOJ document release drew renewed attention to Iozzo's past ties to Epstein, Black Hat removed him from its public review board listings. Iozzo said he did not resign and would not 'willingly resign,' while Black Hat declined to comment.
In early February 2026, the U.S. Department of Justice released more than 2,300 Epstein-related documents that mentioned Vincenzo Iozzo, including an FBI informant report alleging Epstein had a 'personal hacker.' The FBI did not confirm the informant's claim, and the released emails did not provide evidence that Iozzo did anything unlawful for Epstein.
Justice Department materials later released in 2026 included emails describing interactions between Vincenzo Iozzo and Jeffrey Epstein spanning 2014 through 2018. Iozzo said the relationship was professional and that no business opportunities materialized.
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**DEF CON** added **Pablos Holman, Vincenzo Iozzo, and Joichi Ito** to its public list of banned individuals after their names appeared in newly released U.S. Department of Justice files related to **Jeffrey Epstein**. Reporting tied the bans to DOJ-released emails and other documents indicating Epstein’s interest in attending major hacker conferences, including apparent planning around **DEF CON** and related events; it remains unclear whether Epstein ultimately attended DEF CON or *Black Hat*. The disclosures describe interactions including a 2013 effort in which Epstein and associates arranged time around DEF CON where he planned to meet Holman, and 2014 emails in which Ito connected Iozzo with Epstein. TechCrunch reported that DEF CON also pointed to prior media reporting based on the emails, and noted that *Black Hat* and *Code Blue* had removed Iozzo from official review board pages amid the same revelations. A spokesperson for Iozzo criticized DEF CON’s decision as “performative” and a “rush to judgment,” while representatives for DEF CON, Holman, and Ito did not immediately provide comment in that reporting.
Jun 29, 2026
The U.S. Department of Justice released a document from the *Epstein Files* stating that a confidential FBI informant alleged in 2017 that Jeffrey Epstein had a “personal hacker.” The document does not reflect verified FBI findings and is heavily redacted, leaving the accuracy and reliability of the claims unclear; the FBI declined to comment and DOJ did not respond to media requests. According to the informant’s allegations, the hacker was an Italian born in Calabria who specialized in finding vulnerabilities in **iOS**, **BlackBerry** devices, and the **Firefox** browser, and who developed and sold **zero-day exploits** and other offensive cyber tools to multiple governments, including the U.S. and the U.K. The informant also claimed the hacker sold a zero-day to **Hezbollah** in exchange for “a trunk of cash,” and the DOJ document includes additional unverified assertions about the individual’s business ties (including a company reportedly acquired by **CrowdStrike** and a subsequent VP role).
Jun 29, 2026
A **foreign, unidentified hacker** breached the FBI’s New York Field Office in 2023 and accessed files tied to the bureau’s investigation of **Jeffrey Epstein**, according to Reuters reporting based on a source familiar with the incident and Justice Department/court documents. The intrusion reportedly stemmed from a server at the **Child Exploitation Forensic Lab** that was inadvertently left vulnerable by an FBI special agent working the case; a court document described the actor as having “combed through” certain Epstein-related files. The FBI said it **contained the affected network**, assessed the incident as **isolated**, **restricted the actor’s access**, and **remediated** the exposed network, while noting the investigation remains ongoing. Additional reporting identified the agent as **Aaron Spivack** and cited a timeline indicating the break-in occurred on **February 12, 2023**; Reuters also reported the hacker allegedly did not realize they had accessed FBI systems until agents contacted them and requested a video call where they displayed their credentials.
Jun 29, 2026