🏰 The Gates are Open! Welcome to Privacy Village DPD’26 FEST.
This isn’t just another series of webinars. It is a journey into the heart of Privacy, AI Governance, and Security—where compliance meets play, and learning feels like an epic quest.
Privacy folks, it’s that time of the year again. As January 28 approaches, Privacy Village opens its doors—welcoming the privacy, AI, and security community to a true Disneyland of compliance.
The wait is over. The first-of-its-kind gamified privacy festival has returned.
Whether you are here to learn from the experts, battle for the leaderboard, or solve the mystery, your festival pass is now active.
🛡️ CHOOSE YOUR ADVENTURE PATH:
Level 1: The Observer (Events & Learning) Sit back and absorb knowledge from world-class experts. Here is your Festival Lineup:
✅ TPRM & Privacy with Murat Lostar
✅ Getting Ready for Privacy Interviews with Swati Popuri (Jan 12)
✅ Privacy in Machine Learning with Dr. Osman Gazi Güçlütürk (Jan 12)
✅ AI Literacy Board Game Night with Michael Novack (Jan 13)
✅ Creative AI & World Building with Game of Thrones Artist Ertaç Altınöz (Jan 15)
✅ ML, Security & Privacy Fireside with Michael Novack (Jan 20)
✅ D&D Privacy Adventure Night with Tess Lynch (Jan 22)
✅ Decoding the EU AI Act with Muhammed Demircan (Jan 23)
✅ Gamification But Not As You Know It with Michala Liavaag (Jan 26)
✅ AI Governance Careers with James Kavanagh (Jan 27)
✅ How Champions Can Drive Privacy Behaviour With Dustin Lehr (Jan 27)
Level 2: The Adventurer (Community & Factions) We have teamed up with the League of Cyber Defense Champions (LC/DC) to host the "Battle for AI." 👉 Join the Slack community to pick your faction, receive secret missions, network with peers, and earn XP to climb the leaderboard.
Level 3: The Hero (Hardcore Mode) For those who want maximum immersion. Dive into Compliance Detective, our interactive game platform. Solve Middle-earth-inspired Threat Modeling puzzles, unlock hidden lore, and secure the ultimate victory for your faction.
Expect games to be played, wisdom to be shared in fireside chats with world-renowned experts, and the return of the legendary Battle for AI. Once again, participants will choose their side—AI Apocalypse or AI Fundamentalists—earning XP throughout the festival in a friendly (but fiercely competitive) fight for bragging rights and glory.
If you missed the launch video, now’s a great time to catch up and explore what’s coming this year: gaming nights, fireside chats, Slack-based privacy and AI literacy challenges, and a Middle-earth-inspired threat modeling competition, all unfolding between January 12–28.
Register now: https://luma.com/aim1sxva
Learn more about the festival: www.privacyvillage.org
Below is the full speaker and event lineup, so you can mark your calendars and plan your festival journey in advance.
🛡️ Fireside Chat: The Weakest Link? Mastering Third-Party Risks
With Murat Lostar | Entrepreneur & Cybersecurity Pioneer
The Vibe: Join us for an exclusive, intimate session with one of Türkiye’s leading voices in cybersecurity. In a hyper-connected digital ecosystem, your privacy strategy is only as strong as your partners. Murat Lostar takes the festival stage to deconstruct Third-Party Risk Management, moving beyond the basics to reveal how to truly secure your data boundaries. From vendor vetting to digital hygiene, get ready for battle-tested insights from a true industry veteran.
📅 Date: January 12th 🕒 Time:
Istanbul (GMT+3): 18:00
London (GMT): 15:00
New York (EST): 10:00 AM
🎓 Masterclass: Privacy in Machine Learning
With Dr. Osman Gazi Güçlütürk | Assist. Prof at Galatasaray University & OECD AI Expert
The Vibe: We are bringing the Ivy League to the Village. Meet Dr. Osman Gazi Güçlütürk, the academic powerhouse whose PhD thesis was officially recognized as the “Best Thesis of the Year” in Türkiye.
With a resume that spans Galatasaray, Oxford, and Yale Law School, Dr. Güçlütürk bridges the gap between deep legal theory and high-stakes international policy. As an expert at the OECD and an observer at the Council of Europe, he is actively shaping the global rulebook for AI. In this masterclass session, he will dissect the complex relationship between Privacy and Machine Learning, offering a view from the very top of the governance pyramid. If you want to understand where the laws are going before they get there, take a seat in the front row.
📅 Date: January 12th 🕒 Time:
Istanbul (GMT+3): 19:00
London (GMT): 16:00
New York (EST): 11:00 AM
🚀 Fireside Chat: Level Up! Cracking the Privacy Job Interview
With Swati Popuri | Data Privacy Architect & Tech Translator
The Vibe: Ready to turn your privacy passion into a career? Step into the lounge with Swati Popuri, the powerhouse Data Privacy Architect behind major implementations at Allegis Group and Twitter. Swati didn’t just survive the trenches of big tech compliance—she thrived, winning awards for making complex data governance accessible.
In this high-energy session, she’s sharing the “cheat codes” for the hiring process. From translating technical jargon into executive gold to showcasing the skills that major companies are desperate for right now, this is your roadmap to landing the job. Don’t just apply—arrive ready to lead.
📅 Date: [January 12th 2025] 🕒 Time:
Istanbul (GMT+3): 20:00
London (GMT): 17:00
New York (EST): 12:00 PM (Noon)
🎲 Gaming Night: Tech Games Unplugged
With Michael Novack | Builder, AI Strategist & Game Creator
The Vibe: Put down the textbooks and pick up a deck! We are closing out the day with a session that proves learning privacy doesn’t have to be a grind. Michael Novack, a builder at heart and the mind behind AIceberg, is bringing his passion project to the Privacy Village: Tech Games.
Michael believes the best way to decode complex tech is to play with it. In this interactive session, we explore how card and board games can break down barriers, turning heavy cybersecurity concepts into accessible, “fun-first” experiences. Whether you are a CISO or a total newbie, come pull a chair up to the table—it’s time to level up your knowledge on an even playing field.
📅 Date: January 13th 🕒 Time:
Istanbul (GMT+3): 19:00
London (GMT): 16:00
New York (EST): 11:00 AM
🐉 Artist Keynote: From Fan Art to the Iron Throne
With Ertaç Altınöz | Digital Illustrator & Official Game of Thrones Artist
The Vibe: We are taking a detour from compliance frameworks to enter the realm of dragons! Meet Ertaç Altınöz, the Turkish digital artist whose passion for detail was so undeniable that George R.R. Martin officially tapped him to illustrate The Rise of the Dragon.
Ertaç is living proof that “fan art” can become “canon” if the quality is undeniable. In this visual feast of a session, he will discuss the art of world-building, the discipline of “clawing” your way to the top of the global industry, and how to tell stories that captivate millions. Whether you are building a privacy game, a compliance program, or a fantasy novel, the principles of immersion are the same. Come for the dragons, stay for the inspiration.
📅 Date: January 15th 🕒 Time:
Istanbul (GMT+3): 20:00
London (GMT): 17:00
New York (EST): 12:00 PM (Noon)
🔥 Fireside Chat: The ML, Privacy & Security Triad
With Michael Novack | Builder, AI Strategist & Game Creator
The Vibe: He is back! After making waves at previous festivals, Michael Novack returns to the Privacy Village, this time trading the podium for a comfortable armchair.
In this candid fireside chat, Michael will strip away the hype to explore the volatile intersection of Machine Learning, Privacy, and Security. He will discuss the reality of adversarial attacks, the engineering challenges of privacy-preserving ML, and how to build secure AI pipelines in 2026. Whether you are a privacy pro grappling with algorithms or a security engineer hardening models, this is your chance to get real answers. Come for the reunion, stay for the technical deep dive.
📅 Date: January 20th🕒 Time:
Istanbul (GMT+3): 19:00
London (GMT): 16:00
New York (EST): 11:00 AM
⚔️ Interactive Adventure: Dungeons, Dragons & Data Defense
With Tess Lynch | Privacy Attorney & TTRPG Designer
The Vibe:We are trading legal briefs for character sheets! Meet Tess Lynch, the privacy attorney and TTRPG designer who knows that the best way to learn the rules is to play the game.
In a festival first, Tess is taking us off the stage and into the dungeon. Instead of a standard lecture, she will lead us through a live Dungeons & Dragons privacy adventure. We will navigate the treacherous terrain of data governance, battle the monsters of non-compliance, and roll for initiative against regulatory risks. Whether you are a Level 1 Data Subject or a Level 20 CISO, this is an immersive quest where legal strategy meets critical hits. Grab your dice and get ready to save the realm (and the data).
📅 Date: January 22nd🕒 Time:
Istanbul (GMT+3): 19:00
London (GMT): 16:00
New York (EST): 11:00 AM
⚖️ Fireside Chat: Decoding the EU AI Act – Straight from Brussels
With Muhammed Demircan | Associate at DLA Piper & EDPB Expert
The Vibe: We are going straight to the source for this one. Meet Muhammed Demircan, a legal powerhouse bridging the gap between Istanbul and Brussels. As an Associate at DLA Piper Belgium and a listed expert in the EDPB Support Pool, Muhammed doesn’t just read regulations; he operates at the forefront of where they are made and enforced.
In this exclusive fireside chat, Muhammed will break down the massive complexity of the EU AI Act into actionable insights. Drawing on his experience with top-tier international teams and his deep academic roots at the College of Europe, he will cut through the legalese to explain what the new rules actually mean for developers, privacy pros, and companies trying to stay compliant. Whether you are navigating global data frameworks or curious about the Brussels effect, this is your direct line to EU digital regulation.
📅 Date: January 23rd 🕒 Time:
Istanbul (GMT+3): 20:00
London (GMT): 17:00
New York (EST): 12:00 PM (Noon)
🎲 Session: Gamification But Not As You Know It
With Michala Liavaag | vCISO, Cybersecurity GamesMaster & Founder of Cybility
The Vibe: We are tuning up the orchestra for this one. Meet Michala Liavaag, a vCISO with a classical music degree who knows that security isn’t a solo act—it is a symphony.
Michala is a literal “Cybersecurity GamesMaster” who combines her background as a former game store founder with over 25 years in IT to orchestrate security through play. In this unique session, she will introduce the “CyberSecurity Conductor’s Companion™” and her H.A.C.C.E.R.™ approach. She will challenge us to look beyond simple badges and leaderboards to discover how “playful learning” can actually stick, changing culture and behavior for good. If you are tired of security training falling flat, come learn how to conduct a performance that resonates.
📅 Date: January 26th 🕒 Time:
Istanbul (GMT+3): 18:00
London (GMT): 15:00
New York (EST): 10:00 AM
🏗️ Fireside Chat: Engineering Trust: The New Era of AI Governance
With James Kavanagh | Founder, AI Career Pro & The Company Ethos & Ex-AWS/Microsoft Leader
The Vibe: We are bringing in the heavyweights for this one. Meet James Kavanagh, a veteran leader who spent two decades shaping cloud infrastructure and Responsible AI at giants like Amazon and Microsoft.
In this masterclass of a fireside chat, James will dismantle the idea that trust is just a feeling. Instead, he presents AI governance as a rigorous discipline—blending engineering scale, regulatory policy, and scientific evidence. He will discuss how to move beyond high-level principles to create systems of “Continuous Assurance,” where safety and privacy are built, tested, and demonstrated, not just assumed. If you want to know how to govern AI with the precision of an engineer and the insight of a regulator, do not miss this.
📅 Date: January 27th 🕒 Time:
Istanbul (GMT+3): 18:00
London (GMT): 15:00
New York (EST): 10:00 AM
How Champions Can Drive Privacy Behaviour
With Dustin Lehr | Co-founder, Katilyst & AppSec Advocate
The Vibe: We are closing the gap between policy and practice. Meet Dustin Lehr, the “Security Champion Champion” who spent over a decade as a software engineer before leading security initiatives at companies like Staples and Fivetran.
Dustin knows that you cannot simply mandate privacy; you have to motivate it. In this actionable session, he will open his playbook on behavioral science and gamification to show us how to build a network of internal “Champions” who embed privacy directly into the code. He is shifting the narrative from security as a blocker to security as a culture. If you are ready to stop chasing tickets and start building a movement within your engineering teams, this is the blueprint you need.
📅 Date: January 27th 🕒 Time:
Istanbul (GMT+3): 20:00
London (GMT): 17:00
New York (EST): 12:00 PM (Noon)
✉️ Check Your Inbox: Once you’ve registered, your journey truly begins! 👉 You’ll receive invitations to festival activities, access the Slack community and the Compliance Detective platform —this is where all the action happens!
Register now: https://luma.com/aim1sxva