Char49 at OWASP AppSec Days Portugal 2026
Char49 will be taking part in OWASP AppSec Days Portugal 2026, one of Portugal’s leading events dedicated to application security, bringing together cybersecurity professionals, developers, researchers, architects, and specialists from across the security community.
This year’s edition will take place on September 23 and 24 in Porto, at Fundação António Cupertino de Miranda, featuring a programme of technical workshops, hands-on sessions, keynotes, and talks focused on some of today’s most relevant Application Security challenges.
Char49’s involvement in the event will take two different forms: David Sopas, Security Research Lead at Char49, will deliver a technical workshop focused on Bluetooth Low Energy security, while Paulo Silva is part of the event’s organising team.
David Sopas presents “Hacking BLE 101”
On September 23, David Sopas will deliver the “Hacking BLE 101” Security Training Workshop, a four-hour practical session dedicated to the security of the Bluetooth Low Energy (BLE) protocol.
BLE is now found in a vast range of devices, from wearables and smart locks to sensors, medical equipment, and a wide variety of IoT solutions. As its adoption continues to grow, it also represents an increasingly relevant attack surface for security researchers and professionals.
The workshop will start with the fundamentals of the BLE protocol before progressively moving towards attack surface analysis and techniques used in real-world security research.
Topics covered during the session will include:
- Bluetooth Low Energy fundamentals and architecture;
- GATT services, characteristics, and descriptors;
- BLE device analysis and enumeration;
- Passive sniffing and communication interception;
- Replay attacks;
- Unauthorised access;
- Downgrade attacks;
- Man-in-the-Middle (MitM) attacks;
- Identifying vulnerable implementations;
- Tools and hardware used in BLE security research.
Hands-on exercises will play an important role throughout the session, giving participants the opportunity to interact with BLE devices and apply the different techniques covered during the workshop.
The goal is to provide a practical introduction to offensive security in Bluetooth Low Energy environments, equipping participants with knowledge and techniques that can later be applied when assessing IoT devices and other systems that rely on this technology.
Paulo Silva joins the AppSec Days Portugal organising team
Char49’s presence at the event also extends to its organisation.
Paulo Silva is part of the organising committee for OWASP AppSec Days Portugal 2026, joining the team responsible for preparing an edition expected to bring together more than 400 professionals from the security, software development, and technology communities.
This involvement reinforces Char49’s connection with the cybersecurity community and its commitment to helping create spaces where professionals, researchers, and developers can exchange experiences, discuss emerging threats, and share technical knowledge.
Two days dedicated to Application Security
OWASP AppSec Days Portugal 2026 will take place over two days.
The first day, September 23, will primarily focus on workshops and hands-on training sessions, including David Sopas’ “Hacking BLE 101”.
On September 24, the main conference will take place, featuring keynotes, several technical tracks, and sessions covering topics such as secure software engineering, cloud and DevSecOps, application, API and mobile security, threat modelling, governance, and risk management.
For Char49, being actively involved in both technical knowledge sharing and event organisation reflects our approach to cybersecurity: one built around research, collaboration, and active participation in the security community.
We look forward to seeing you in Porto on September 23 and 24 for another edition of OWASP AppSec Days Portugal.