> lexington, ky · verified sep 27, 2026
Kentucky
Lexington has no standing security meetup; the steadiest local option is the Kentuckiana ISACA chapter's monthly Friday lunch meeting, which Lexington members watch together at a downtown remote-viewing room. The University of Kentucky's free UK_CYBERCON is the city's main security event, and Frankfort hosts the Kentucky Cybersecurity and Forensics Conference and the National Guard's Cyber Bluegrass exercise in late October 2026.
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Wed, Oct 14, 2026 · 9:00 a.m. to 4:00 p.m.; doors open 8:30 a.m.
Otis A. Singletary Center for the Arts, 405 Rose St, Lexington
Run by University of Kentucky Information Technology Services. Panels, poster sessions and networking, open to students and professionals; the organizer says no cybersecurity background is needed. Free with registration; parking is paid.
ConfirmedConferenceFree
Fri, Oct 16, 2026
Northern Kentucky University, Highland Heights, KY · Regional
Run by NKU's College of Informatics, about 75 miles north of Lexington. Talks, panels and a closing reception; tickets are sold through the event page.
ConfirmedConferencePaid
Tue, Oct 27 to Thu, Oct 29, 2026 · Exercise week; a separate training week runs October 19 to 23, 2026
Boone National Guard Center, 100 Minuteman Parkway, Frankfort · Metro area
Annual cyber range exercise run by the Kentucky National Guard's Kentucky Cyber Resilience Initiative, with red and blue team scenarios. Open to all sectors, including local government IT, critical infrastructure operators, MSPs and security professionals. Registration is through an application form linked from the organizer page; no fee is listed.
ConfirmedTrainingVetting required
Fri, Oct 30, 2026 · 7:30 a.m. to 4:30 p.m.
Kentucky State University, Harold R. Benson Research and Demonstration Farm, 1525 Mills Lane, Frankfort · Metro area
Student poster abstracts due: Fri, Oct 23, 2026
Annual statewide conference of Kentucky's CAE institutions, organized by the Kentucky Center for Academic Excellence and hosted in 2026 by Kentucky State University. Talks, panels, demonstrations and a high school and college student poster session. Registration is online with several categories; Kentucky State faculty and staff attend free. The organizer does not list other prices on its page.
ConfirmedConferencePaid
kysu.edu/academics/college-bet/2026-kentucky-cy… [S4] [S5] [S6]
Fri, Nov 13 to Sun, Nov 15, 2026
151 West Fifth Street, Cincinnati, OH · Regional
Three-day community security conference with talks, workshops and networking, run by Cannon Fodder Security. Cincinnati is about 80 miles north of Lexington.
ConfirmedConferencePaid
Fri, Dec 4, 2026 · 8:00 a.m. to 5:00 p.m.
Student Activity Center, 2100 S Floyd St, Louisville · Regional
Community security conference covering red teaming, CTF and mental health, about 80 miles west of Lexington. The date and venue come from the event data on the organizer's site.
ConfirmedConferencePaid
Sat, May 15, 2027 · 9:30 a.m. to 5:00 p.m.
Fairborn City Church, 206 W Dayton-Yellow Springs Rd, Fairborn, OH · Regional
The nearest active BSides conference, with talks, villages and a CTF. Fairborn is about two hours north of Lexington.
ConfirmedConferencePaid
Announced without a date, or expected from past editions. Not confirmed.
The 2026 conference was held March 26 and 27, 2026; 2027 dates not yet announced.
Louisville, KY (University of Louisville Shelby Campus in 2026) · Regional
ExpectedConferencePaid
The 2026 summit was held May 21, 2026; 2027 date not yet announced.
Frankfort, KY (Kentucky Transportation Cabinet Building, 200 Mero St, in 2026) · Metro area
ExpectedSummitFree
Usually held in September; the 2026 edition was on September 11, 2026. 2027 date not yet announced.
Louisville, KY (University of Louisville Shelby Campus in 2026) · Regional
ExpectedConferencePaid
Dean Dorton, 250 W Main St, Suite 1400, Lexington (remote-viewing room); main meeting in Louisville · In the city
Monthly lunch meeting on a Friday, 11:30 a.m. or noon; in person in Louisville, with a Lexington viewing room and an online option
The chapter is based in Louisville. Its 2026 meeting pages (January, July and August) list three ways to attend: in person at Dean Dorton in Louisville, an in-person remote-viewing room at Dean Dorton's Lexington office, or online. Speakers present from Louisville. Registration is through Eventbrite; the August 21, 2026 meeting was free.
Free
Statewide; meetings rotate between Louisville and other Kentucky cities · In the city
Aims to meet quarterly; meetings are not posted publicly
Membership requires an FBI-vetted application. The chapter says it aims to meet quarterly at locations in Louisville and elsewhere in the state and shares much of its information only with members. The last dated public meeting found was an April 30, 2024 briefing in Lexington; the page that listed it is no longer online. The site owner confirmed the chapter active on September 27, 2026 and pointed to the Louisville Metro InfoSec Conference site, run by ISSA Kentuckiana (September 11, 2026 in Louisville); that page does not name InfraGard.
Vetting required
BCTC, Lexington (Newtown Campus and others) · In the city
Occasional student events; no regular schedule posted
BCTC is an NSA/DHS National Center of Academic Excellence in Cyber Defense. The center's events page lists an April 11, 2025 AI challenge at the Newtown Campus for BCTC and Big Sandy students only, and no later event. BCTC also runs a Cybersecurity for All program with workshops and field trips for enrolled and dual-credit students.
Quiet: last activity Apr 2025Students only
Eastern Kentucky University, Richmond · Metro area
Meetings during the academic year; the September 22, 2026 meeting was at 6:00 p.m. in Wallace 454
EKU student organization that trains teams for the Collegiate Cyber Defense Competition, where students defend a network against live attacks. Richmond is about 25 miles south of Lexington. No later meeting was posted on September 27, 2026.
Students only
| Directory | Result |
|---|---|
| 2600 Meetings | No chapter found |
| CISA Regional Offices | Nearest: CISA Region 4 (covers Kentucky); no public Lexington events posted |
| Cloud Security Alliance | Nearest: CSA Ohio River Valley Chapter (covers Kentucky; meets in Columbus and online) |
| Cyversity (formerly ICMCP) Chapters | No chapter found |
| DEF CON Groups | Local chapter: DC859 (DEF CON Group Lexington) |
| HTCIA | Nearest: HTCIA Ohio Chapter |
| IAPP KnowledgeNet | Nearest: IAPP KnowledgeNet Louisville |
| InfraGard Members Alliances | Local chapter: InfraGard Kentucky Members Alliance |
| ISACA | Local chapter: ISACA Kentuckiana Chapter |
| ISC2 | Nearest: ISC2 Kentucky Triangle Chapter (Louisville and Fort Knox area) |
| ISSA | Nearest: ISSA Kentuckiana (Louisville) |
| NSA National Centers of Academic Excellence in Cybersecurity (NCAE-C) | Local chapter: Bluegrass Community and Technical College Cybersecurity Center |
| OWASP | Nearest: OWASP Somerset |
| SANS Institute | No chapter found |
| SecureWorld | No chapter found |
| Security BSides | Nearest: BSidesDayton (Fairborn, OH) |
| TOOOL (The Open Organisation Of Lockpickers) | No chapter found |
| WiCyS (Women in CyberSecurity) Professional Affiliates | No chapter found |
| Women's Society of Cyberjutsu (WSC) Chapters | No chapter found |
Numbered references for the listings on this page.