Ask experienced European security practitioners which conference they’d attend if they could only pick one, and TROOPERS comes up more often than its modest size would suggest.
The 2026 edition runs 22–26 June in Heidelberg, Germany, hosted as ever by ERNW at the Print Media Academy — and for CISOs running European programmes, it’s the conference your best technical people probably want to attend.
The Conference at a Glance
TROOPERS is built on a clean structure: two days of high-end training (23–24 June), two days of three-track conference content (24–25 June), and a final day of Roundtables (26 June) where attendees discuss current issues with the speakers and each other.
The 2026 tracks cover Attack & Research, Defense & Management, and Active Directory & Entra ID Security — the AD/Entra track being something of a TROOPERS signature, attracting the European identity security research community in a way no other conference does.
More than 3,000 attendees have come through TROOPERS over the years, and speakers have come from more than 25 countries.
Who It’s For
TROOPERS attracts a deeply technical international audience — practitioners, researchers, and red-team and blue-team leads who value substance over spectacle.
The conference is explicit about discouraging vendor pitches, and speakers are vetted for original work; the organisers reserve the right to ask for modifications to confirmed talks if they detect product placement creeping in.
CISOs attend, but the value for senior leaders is mainly in understanding what their best technical people are actually working on, and in sending those people to come back sharper.
Heidelberg itself is small enough that the conference takes over the social rhythm of the town for the week, which is part of the experience.
Highlights and Themes from the Most Recent Edition
Recent TROOPERS editions have anchored European research on Active Directory and Azure/Entra ID attack paths, with the Roundtables format producing genuine technical exchange rather than panel-style filler.
Defensive content has steadily strengthened around detection engineering, identity threat detection and response, and the operational mechanics of running mature security programmes.
The community culture — the conference dinner and social programme bring people together in a way larger events can’t replicate — is consistently cited as part of the value, and it’s one of the reasons TROOPERS has retained a loyal audience across edition after edition.
Speaker travel and accommodation are covered for accepted submissions, which keeps the speaker pool international and the content quality consistent.
What to Expect Going Forward
The 2026 programme will continue to weight identity security heavily, with sustained attention to AD and Entra ID research.
Expect strong content on AI/ML offensive and defensive techniques, OT security, and the practical realities of running modern detection programmes.
The Roundtables on the final day are the format’s distinguishing feature and worth staying for, even when the temptation is to leave after the main conference.
The Bottom Line
TROOPERS isn’t trying to compete with Black Hat or RSAC, and that’s precisely why it’s worth attending.
For senior leaders running European security programmes, send your AD architects, identity engineers, and senior red-teamers — they’ll come back with research, contacts, and genuine technical insight that’s hard to source elsewhere.
For CISOs willing to invest a few days in Heidelberg, the Roundtables alone justify the trip; you’ll get more candid technical conversation than any larger event will give you.