A hacker linked to Epstein has been removed from the Black Hat cyber conference website

Vincenzo Iozzo, a notorious gangster linked to convicted sex offender Jeffrey Epstein, is no longer listed on the Black Hat website, one of the world’s largest cybersecurity conferences, or the Japanese security conference Code Blue.

As of Thursday, Iozzo does not appear on the official review board pages of Black Hat or Code Blue. He was still listed on both pages as of last week. Iozzo has been on Black Hat’s review board since 2011, according to his LinkedIn profile.

In a statement shared with TechCrunch through his spokesperson, Iozzo said he told Black Hat that he “will not resign voluntarily” and accepted a “full investigation.”

Black Hat spokespeople did not respond to requests for comment.

Iozzo, currently the founder and CEO of cybersecurity startup SlashID, has had a long career in the industry. Iozzo wrote one of the first books on hackers researching Apple’s mobile software, and in 2015, he founded cybersecurity firm IperLane, which was later bought by CrowdStrike, leading him to serve as the company’s executive director for nearly four years.

Iozzo’s name appears in more than 2,300 documents, some containing several emails, released Jan. 30 as part of the Justice Department’s legally required effort to publish material from its investigation into the late financier and sex trafficker.

Iozzo’s relationship with Epstein lasted from October 2014 to December 2018. In late 2018, the Miami Herald published stories detailing allegations that Epstein sexually assaulted more than 60 women, some of whom were teenage girls.

After the news was published, newly released emails show that Iozzo was trying to meet with Epstein at his home in New York City.

Among the new materials published by the Department of Justice, in addition to more than 2,300 2,300 documents about Iozzo, there is a report from an FBI informant who said that Epstein had “a personal thief.” The document has been redacted and does not name the person accused of the robbery. However, some of the identifying information included in the document strongly suggests that the informant believed Iozzo was Epstein’s accomplice. Italian newspaper Il Corriere della Sera reported on the emails earlier this month and named Iozzo as a possible victim of the document.

It is important to note that the claims and allegations in the FBI information have not been verified by the FBI and may be incorrect. Furthermore, there is no evidence in the emails to suggest that Iozzo did anything illegal to Epstein.

Iozzo said in a statement to TechCrunch that he “knows Epstein for professional reasons” and that he wished to remain anonymous, but denied allegations that he was Epstein’s hacker or stalker.

“We were introduced in 2014 when I was 25 years old at MIT to raise money for my startup, by people I trusted and admired. Because of this, I failed to ask the right questions that, looking back, seem obvious,” read the statement, sent by his spokesperson Joan Vollero. “I foolishly accepted the narrative I was told by others that greatly diminished the magnitude of his horrific actions. I regret past interactions and take full responsibility for not showing more judgment at the time.”

“My interactions with Epstein have been limited to unprecedented business opportunities, and discussions of emerging markets and technologies. I have never witnessed or participated in any illegal activity or conduct,” Iozzo added.

In 2008, Epstein pleaded guilty to soliciting sex from 14-year-old girls and was registered as a sex offender in Florida and New York. In 2018, new reports surfaced that Epstein was accused of sexually abusing and trafficking teenage girls from his private island. After these new reports, the Department of Justice charged Epstein in 2019 with trafficking, exploiting and abusing dozens of teenage girls. Epstein later died in prison.

Neither Iozzo’s spokesman Vollero, nor his attorney Emma Spiro, explained why Iozzo was removed from Black Hat’s website, but they did not dispute the removal.

“Mr. Iozzo accepted an independent investigation from Black Hat, instead of a decision to remove the knees, because he is confident that he will be removed in that way,” said Vollero.

Code Blue spokesperson Ken-ichi Saito confirmed to TechCrunch that the conference has removed Iozzo’s name from its review board. Saito said the conference “had been preparing this update for several months” to remove Iozzo and two other members of the board of reviewers who “had not been active” and that “the timing of our website update coincidentally coincided with the public release of the Epstein documents.”