Hacker Con Badges

RootedCON

RootedCON 2026

The March 5-7, 2026 sixteenth RootedCON edition in Madrid whose direct TechFrontiers project-builder account and community reversing repositories document a PACMAN Ghost ESP32 attendee badge with display, directional controls, ESP-NOW CTF interaction, and a native quiz-server protocol.

Kinepolis, Madrid · Spain · 2026

RootedCON 2026 Pacman Badge

RootedCON 2026's PACMAN-themed attendee CTF badge is documented by both community reversals and a first-hand TechFrontiers project-builder write-up. David Melendez Cano reports original colored Ghost boards that attendees could choose, an ESP32-WROOM-32 platform, ESP-NOW game-server interaction, per-badge NVS identity/key material, and digitally signed questions and answers. Community reversals independently identify an ESP32-D0WD-V3, 1.77-inch ST7735 128x160 display, directional controls, and native quiz-server CTF protocol for the March 5-7 sixteenth edition at Kinepolis Madrid.

Lifecycle

Add-ons & Upgrades

RootedCON 2026 Pacman Badge community-reversed

badge firmware

Pacman-themed original firmware

The original PACMAN-themed badge firmware's native quiz-server CTF protocol was reversed by the community. The community repository is not an official RootedCON release.

Compatibility: RootedCON 2026 Pacman Badge

RootedCON 2026 Pacman Badge post-event

community firmware

r4venOS WiFi auditing replacement

The r4venOS community firmware replaces the Pacman firmware with a WiFi scanner, evil-twin detector, deauth, and crypto utility toolkit on the same ESP32 hardware.

Compatibility: RootedCON 2026 Pacman Badge

RootedCON 2026 Pacman Badge direct project-builder account

event CTF and badge networking

Ed25519-signed ESP-NOW CTF interaction

The builder describes ESP-NOW question distribution, Ed25519 verification before display, and individual badge-signed replies to the game server. This preserves the source-described event architecture without publishing packet construction, key-recovery steps, backend endpoints, final protocol source, cryptographic review, or a general security guarantee.

Compatibility: RootedCON 2026 PACMAN/Ghost attendee CTF badge

RootedCON 2026 Pacman Badge direct project-builder account

event badge design and allocation

PACMAN Ghost board choices and organization-only PACMAN variant

The TechFrontiers builder account says attendees could choose red, purple, green, or blue Ghost boards, while PACMAN boards were reserved for the organization. It does not establish quantities, exact recipient ledger, final color inventory, or every physical-board variant.

Compatibility: RootedCON 2026 PACMAN/Ghost attendee CTF badge

RootedCON 2026 Pacman Badge direct project-builder account

power and debug architecture

LiPo/UVLO, USB serial, and screen-power design surface

The builder describes LiPo 1S, integrated charging, under-voltage lockout, automatic USB-serial RESET/EN control, exposed UART0, and an extra screen-ground MOSFET on some boards. The account does not establish cell capacity, charge settings, board-revision coverage, electrical testing, safe modification, or a production-service procedure.

Compatibility: RootedCON 2026 PACMAN/Ghost attendee CTF badge

Operational history

Issues & Camp Impact

RootedCON 2026 Pacman Badge note

missing rights-cleared image · local project policy · needs licensed original replacement

No RootedCON 2026 Pacman Badge image is published because neither the event, community repositories, nor the TechFrontiers builder post pairs a selected original badge photo or upstream raster with the complete reusable source URL, permission basis, attribution, and processing record.

The Spanish record remains source-backed and image-free rather than copying community repository diagrams, the LinkedIn post image, screenshots, social media, placeholders, or generated approximations.

RootedCON 2026 Pacman Badge note

project-builder confirmation and official-archive gap · direct project-builder post plus community sources · direct build/CTF confirmation; official archive unrecovered

The TechFrontiers write-up directly attributes the PACMAN Ghost badge build and CTF design to David Melendez Cano and Gabriela G., while community reversals independently document several component and firmware details. Neither source set supplies an official RootedCON design repository, complete schematic/PCB/BOM/Gerber archive, production ledger, final revision map, battery/charger documentation, backend/protocol source, release, or license.

The catalogue now records direct builder attribution and event architecture without portraying a personal project post or community reverse-engineering tree as an official RootedCON source release, complete production specification, firmware security audit, or reusable-image permission.

Resources

r4venOS custom firmware community firmware repository · Community replacement firmware for the RootedCON 2026 ESP32 badge, documenting WiFi scanner, evil-twin detection, deauth, and crypto utilities on the same hardware. badge_controller repurpose community repurpose repository · Community repository repurposing the RootedCON 2026 CTF badge as a wireless controller for a fighting robot over ESP32, TFT, and d-pad. Pacman Badge reversing repository community reversing repository · Community repository reversing the RootedCON 2026 Pacman Badge firmware, including arcade mode, Marauder integration, and the native quiz-server CTF protocol, published under GPL-3.0. TechFrontiers RootedCON 2026 badge CTF write-up first-hand project-builder write-up · David Melendez Cano's public TechFrontiers write-up describes building the PACMAN Ghost attendee boards, their color variants, ESP32-WROOM-32, LiPo/UVLO/USB-debug surface, ESP-NOW CTF architecture, and signed question/answer model. It is direct builder evidence, not an official RootedCON source release or a reusable-image grant. RootedCON 2026 official site official event page · Official RootedCON source for the March 5-7, 2026 sixteenth edition at Kinepolis, Madrid.

Sources

David Melendez Cano / TechFrontiers: Cómo construimos un CTF con badges ESP32 firmados criptográficamente en RootedCON Retrieved 2026-05-15 · A direct April 6, 2026 project-builder account of the RootedCON PACMAN Ghost boards, attendee color choices, ESP32-WROOM-32, power/debug architecture, ESP-NOW game interaction, per-badge identity/key material, and signed CTF-question/answer design. It does not provide an official RootedCON archive, complete production data, image-reuse permission, or a safe operating guide. GitHub / DonJulve: RootedCon2026-PacmanBadge-Reversing Retrieved 2026-05-15 · Primary community source for the ESP32-D0WD-V3, ST7735 1.77-inch 128x160 display, D-pad, and native quiz-server CTF protocol reconstruction, published under GPL-3.0. GitHub / aherreros-dev: ravenOS_rooted26_badge Retrieved 2026-05-15 · Community source corroborating the ESP32 DevKit hardware and documenting the WiFi auditing custom firmware replacement surface. GitHub / double-thinker: badge_controller Retrieved 2026-05-15 · Community source corroborating the ESP32, TFT, and d-pad hardware by repurposing the badge as a wireless robot controller. RootedCON: RootedCON 2026 Retrieved 2026-05-15 · Primary official source for the March 5-7, 2026 sixteenth edition, Kinepolis Madrid venue, and Spanish cybersecurity-conference context.