Northsec
NorthSec is a Montreal-based non-profit that organizes Canada's largest applied security event — a two-day conference, 48-hour CTF competition, and multi-day training sessions — serving cybersecurity professionals, students, and corporate sponsors through ticket sales and tiered sponsorships.
- Company typePrivate
- Founded2013
- HeadquartersMontreal, Canada
- Headcount11–50
- GTM typeB2C
- OfferingServices
What Northsec does
NorthSec is a Montreal-based non-profit organization that operates Canada's largest applied security event, combining a two-day technical conference, a 48-hour on-site Capture-The-Flag (CTF) competition, and multi-day hands-on training sessions. Founded in 2013 (with spiritual predecessor HackUS at Université de Sherbrooke in 2010-2011), the event has grown from approximately 150 participants to over 1,300-1,500+ attendees across recent editions and has sold out every year since inception. The organization is governed by a Board of Administrators and an Organizing Committee of approximately 50 volunteers, with no paid staff; key leadership includes Maxime Voet (President of the Organizing Committee), Olivier Bilodeau (Vice-President of the Organizing Committee and Board member), and Jean-Sébastien Delorme (President of the Board and VP Training).
The product portfolio consists of three core pillars — Conference (talks, workshops, thematic panels), Competition (48-hour CTF with multiple physical tracks and 90+ teams), and Training (multi-day expert-led sessions on red teaming, application security, reverse engineering, hardware hacking, cloud, detection engineering, and AI security) — supplemented by Villages (community spaces including RF Village and Badge Museum), annually themed hardware badges, a themed Thursday party, a free archived content library on Peertube/YouTube, and an e-commerce merchandise store. The technology stack is operational rather than proprietary: registrations.nsec.io for ticketing, Discord for community, Peertube/YouTube for content distribution, and standard event-management tooling; no proprietary platform, AI/ML system, or software product is offered to external customers.
Revenue is generated through two streams: one-time ticket sales (CTF $290 CAD, Conference $440 CAD, Combo $590 CAD, with student discounts) and a multi-tier corporate sponsorship stack (Sustaining, Gold, Silver, Startup, Supporter, Association). Combined event budget exceeds 900k CAD. Sponsors include Devolutions, OKIOK, SentinelOne, Google, Flare, Wiz, CyberEco, Cobalt, GoSecure, Desjardins, Tenable, Corellium, Shopify, and Pvotal among others. The customer base spans security practitioners, students, managers/executives (roughly 10% of audience), and the volunteer workforce, with an explicit outreach program targeting underrepresented groups. The event is distributed through direct-to-consumer online registration, physical venue at Marché Bonsecours in Old Montreal, YouTube livestreaming, and the merchandise storefront at shop.nsec.io.
Northsec firmographics
Firmographics- Name
- Northsec
- Legal name
- NorthSec
- Website
- https://nsec.io
- Company type
- Private
- Founded year
- 2013
- Operating status
- Operating
- Headcount range
- 11–50 employees
- Short description
- NorthSec is a Montreal-based non-profit that organizes Canada's largest applied security event — a two-day conference, 48-hour CTF competition, and multi-day training sessions — serving cybersecurity professionals, students, and corporate sponsors through ticket sales and tiered sponsorships.
- Ownership category
- akta.pro rank
Northsec industry classification
Industry- Product category
- Applied Security Conferences and Events
- NAICS
- Convention and Trade Show Organizers (561920), Professional Organizations (81392)
- SIC
- Services-Membership Organizations (8600), Services-Educational Services (8200)
- akta.pro primary industry
- Association & Society Conference Management (Nonprofit, Professional Bodies) (THAHACAA)
- akta.pro secondary industries
- Training, Enablement & Talent Development Summits (THAHAMAH), Professional & Certification Expos Organizers (THAHABAD)
Keywords
Where Northsec is headquartered
LocationHeadquarters
- HQ city
- Montreal
- HQ country
- Canada
- HQ region
- North America
Offices1 record
Markets served
Northsec business model
Business model- GTM type
- B2C
- Offering type
- Services
- Cost components
- Personnel, Operations, Infrastructure, Marketing or Sales, Others
Revenue model
- Ticket Sales: Revenue generated from selling tickets to training sessions, conference passes, CTF competition entries, and combo packages. The event has been sold out since inception in 2013.
- Sponsorships: Corporate sponsorships at multiple tiers (Sustaining, Gold, Silver, Startup, Supporters, Associations) providing budget support. Budget is over 900k CAD supported by sponsorship and participants combined.
Pricing tiers
| Model | Billing | Price |
|---|---|---|
| One time/ perpetual license | Pay-as-you-go | Competition (CTF) ticket |
| One time/ perpetual license | Pay-as-you-go | Conference ticket |
| One time/ perpetual license | Pay-as-you-go | Conference + CTF Combo |
Go-to-market motion1 record
Distribution channels4 records
Marketing channels8 records
Northsec product offering
Product offeringCore offering
NorthSec organizes and operates an annual multi-day applied security event in Montreal, Canada, delivering a Conference (talks and themed community villages), a Capture The Flag (CTF) Competition, and professional Training Sessions. Tickets for each track are sold individually or as combos, and the event also produces custom hardware badges and a merchandise store, all coordinated by an all-volunteer organizing team.
Product overview
NorthSec is a non-profit organization operating Canada's largest applied security event, consisting of a two-day technical conference, a 48-hour Capture The Flag (CTF) competition, and multi-day training sessions. The event also features Villages (community spaces with activities like RF Village, Pre-CTF zones, and Badge Museum), an annual themed party, and an online merchandise store. The portfolio centers on in-person cybersecurity education, competition, and community building in Montreal, Quebec.
Differentiator
Problem solved
Functional benefit
Products and services
- Conference A multi-day conference track featuring talks from applied security researchers and themed community villages, sold via individual Conference tickets with discounted options for students.
- Capture The Flag (CTF) Competition A hands-on Capture The Flag competition where participants solve applied security challenges, sold via dedicated Competition tickets.
- Training Sessions Professional, paid security training sessions offered during the event week, sold via individual Training tickets with a 30% student discount.
- Online Store An online merchandise store selling event-branded apparel, stickers, and other NorthSec-themed goods.
Quantifiable outcome
- Sold-out event since inception in 2013
- +1 more outcomes
Companies that use Northsec
Customer profileNamed customers2 records
Segments4 records
Ideal customer profiles4 records
Northsec technology and API
TechnologyAPI detail
- Has API
- No
- API docs
- API detail
Core technology
AI maturity
App detail
Northsec partnerships and signals
Strategic signalPartnerships
21 partnerships are on record, tiered sustaining, gold, silver, startup, supporters, association, core and minor.
- DevolutionssustainingGlobal software company helping organizations worldwide control IT chaos through password, remote connection, and privileged access management. Over 500,000 users across 140 countries. Major sponsor at Sustaining level.
- OKIOKsustainingCanadian leader in information security offering secure data transfer, encryption, identity management services, consulting, and training. One of few in Quebec doing R&D in the sector.
- SentinelOnegoldGold tier sponsor - cybersecurity endpoint protection company
- GooglegoldGold tier sponsor
- FlaregoldGold tier sponsor - threat intelligence company
- WizgoldGold tier sponsor - cloud security company
- CyberEcogoldGold tier sponsor - cybersecurity ecosystem organization based in Canada
- CobaltsilverSilver tier sponsor - penetration testing platform
- GoSecuresilverSilver tier sponsor - managed detection and response provider
- CorelliumsilverSilver tier sponsor providing mobile security testing platform. Offers Corellium Viper access to training participants.
- DesjardinssilverSilver tier sponsor - major Canadian financial cooperative
- TenablesilverSilver tier sponsor - exposure management company
- Pvotal TechnologiesstartupStartup tier sponsor - first startup category sponsor for 2026
- Root-Me PROstartupStartup tier sponsor - CTF training platform providing practice challenges for participants
- ShopifysupportersSupporter tier sponsor - e-commerce platform company
- ISC2 Ottawa ChapterassociationAssociation tier sponsor - professional security certification chapter
- HackFestassociationAssociation tier sponsor - another Canadian security conference
- Marché BonsecourscorePrimary event venue - historic market building in Old Montreal hosting conferences, CTF, and main event activities
- YWCA MontrealcoreTraining venue location - provides space for hands-on training sessions during the event
- Hotel Zero1minorOfficial hotel partner offering promotional rates for event attendees
- CyberEcominorHosted volunteer training day for 2026 edition preparation
Scale indicators9 records
Recent moves6 records
Expansion highlights6 records
Northsec competitors and assessment
Company assessmentDirect peers
- DEF CON: DEF CON is the largest and most established hacker conference in the world, featuring a flagship Capture-The-Flag competition. It is the clearest global benchmark for NorthSec's applied-security + CTF positioning.
- Black Hat: Black Hat is a major annual cybersecurity conference offering technical briefings, training, and Arsenal demos. Comparable to NorthSec's mix of high-quality training, technical talks, and applied security content aimed at practitioners.
- HackFest: HackFest is another Canadian security conference and is explicitly listed as an Association-tier sponsor of NorthSec. It targets the same cybersecurity practitioner audience in Canada with overlapping CTF and training content.
- BSides: BSides is a global network of community-driven security conferences. It shares NorthSec's volunteer-organized, community-first model and applies it to applied-security talks and workshops at smaller scale.
- Chaos Communication Congress (CCC): CCC is Europe's largest hacker conference with a strong community, technical program, and hacker culture. Comparable to NorthSec's themed, community-immersive applied-security positioning.
- Hack In The Box (HITB): HITB runs deep technical security conferences and CTF-style competitions globally. It directly parallels NorthSec's combination of trainings, conference talks, and applied-security competition format.
- TROOPERS: TROOPERS is a long-running European security conference focused on offensive security and research. It mirrors NorthSec's applied / offensive security practitioner audience and training-driven program.
- Nullcon: Nullcon is an annual security conference held in India that combines technical talks, trainings, and a CTF-style competition. Comparable in scope and audience to NorthSec's applied-security event format.
- Ekoparty: Ekoparty is a Latin American security conference focused on offensive security research and CTF-style competitions. Comparable to NorthSec in applied-security positioning and community-driven format.
Broad incumbents
- RSA Conference: RSA Conference is the largest commercial cybersecurity conference in the world. It is broader and more vendor-focused than NorthSec but competes for the same enterprise security audience and sponsor dollars.
Market position
Strengths5 records
Weaknesses5 records
Competitive moat4 records
Key risks5 records
Key highlights6 records
Customer concentration
Northsec social profiles
Digital presenceNorthsec financial estimates
Financial estimateRevenue estimate
Valuation estimate
Northsec leadership team
Management profileNumber of profiles
Profiles21 records
Northsec funding detail
Funding detailFunding overview
Funding rounds
Investors
Funding detail is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →
Northsec M&A and investment
M&A and investmentM&A
Investments
M&A and investment is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →
Frequently asked questions about Northsec
What does Northsec do?
NorthSec organizes and operates an annual multi-day applied security event in Montreal, Canada, delivering a Conference (talks and themed community villages), a Capture The Flag (CTF) Competition, and professional Training Sessions. Tickets for each track are sold individually or as combos, and the event also produces custom hardware badges and a merchandise store, all coordinated by an all-volunteer organizing team.
Is Northsec a public or private company?
Northsec is a private company. It is classified as nonprofit foundation owned and is currently operating.
When was Northsec founded?
Northsec was founded in 2013. It employs 11 to 50 people.
Where is Northsec based?
Northsec is headquartered in Montreal, Canada, in the North America region.
How does Northsec make money?
Two revenue lines are on record. Ticket Sales are the primary driver. The others are sponsorships.
Who are Northsec's main competitors?
Direct peers on record are DEF CON, Black Hat, HackFest, BSides, Chaos Communication Congress (CCC), Hack In The Box (HITB), TROOPERS, Nullcon and Ekoparty. RSA Conference is listed as a broad incumbent.
Does Northsec have an API?
No public API is recorded for Northsec.
What industry is Northsec in?
Northsec's product category is Applied Security Conferences and Events. Its primary akta.pro industry code is THAHACAA, Association & Society Conference Management (Nonprofit, Professional Bodies), with a secondary code of THAHAMAH, Training, Enablement & Talent Development Summits. Its NAICS code is 561920 and its SIC code is 8600.