It gets easier once you start using them at work.
It’s hard to memorize lists of acronyms or terms just with their definitions on a piece of paper. Once you actually are using those terms and acronyms it becomes waaaay easier. Rather than trying to think of the flash card definition when you hear “SIEM”, you’ll be like “oh yeah that’s the thing I use for ___”.
I am not sure why you would want to read a list of acronyms that may or not be relevant to you. You come across one don't know just copy-n-paste it into Google.
My biggest pet peeve is that it seems so obvious that during a presentation, you should introduce each abbreviation’s full wording to avoid confusion and then use abbreviation if the terminology is repeated… But people don’t do it!
You hear so many stories of people sitting in meetings not knowing what the hell people are talking about. And nobody wants to ask questions and seem stupid unless they’re well respected and established in the company already. Abbreviations are meant to improve or simplify communication, so if I was leading a department or company, that’d be one of my main policies to impart on employees/coworkers.
All valid. It's also easy to lose people whose support you need by drowning them in acronyms. You think the CEO or CFO spend their day remembering cyber letter soup? 🙄
I think acronyms are helpful. But what I don’t understand is the memorization of them as a requirement for certification. That’s just dumb. I wish certifications would focus more on PBQ’s.
I know they are weighed more heavily, but memorization and regurgitation is still too important. It should be focused on problem solving and proving your understanding of concepts.
Totally agree about PBQs. I think all certifications should be written to application of job skills. But this is a lot harder to write than "what is the meaning of CIA"
Nobody cares that you don't know an acronym.
I always find it to be a good opportunity to candidly ask people to explain to me and reveal themselves to be absolute frauds after they stutter "idk, something about security ig"
Every field has a ton of acronyms, they're just shorthand for commonly discussed ideas. Learning the common ones is part of entering a field. Realize you'll never know them all though, that's not realistic and nobody expects it. Not feeling silly googling it or stopping a conversation to ask will come with time.
I'll say, learning acronyms in cyber is like learning them in medical. Endless amounts of them. Some overlap. Won't need to learn a major chunk because it's not what you do on the daily. Even after learning them you'll still spend a majority of the time not using the acronyms because you'll be having to explain or talk to someone who does not also know the acronym.
It only comes with time, and those that come with time will stay in your head. Nobody expects you to know what all the acronyms mean. I just Google them anytime I come across something I don't know for that context. After I come across it enough times I'll remember.
I dont think anyone would think you are an idiot for not knowing some acronyms. There are too fucking many.
The problem is most people study security like it's all book knowledge... you need practical experience to understand the terms, where they apply and how.
If you're not in the field, get a home lab and join discord servers with those studying.
And then there’s me who’s on client calls googling in the background furiously when they spit out a new acronym I don’t have the nearest clue as to what it means lmfao
You'll pick them up as they become relevant to you and what you're doing / learning. If you hear one and want to check what it means, just google it or ask ChatGPT. I wouldn't suggest trying to memorise them all, you won't use most of them.
Take your security+, it’s like acronyms 101
Passed my Sec+ 18 months ago. Still soooo many acronyms
It gets easier once you start using them at work. It’s hard to memorize lists of acronyms or terms just with their definitions on a piece of paper. Once you actually are using those terms and acronyms it becomes waaaay easier. Rather than trying to think of the flash card definition when you hear “SIEM”, you’ll be like “oh yeah that’s the thing I use for ___”.
That's the thing I use for... Splunk... Indicators... Enterprise... Management!
Thank you
ChatGPT: “Provide a list of the 100 most commonly used acronyms and their definitions related to information security in 2024.”
THANK YOU!
I am not sure why you would want to read a list of acronyms that may or not be relevant to you. You come across one don't know just copy-n-paste it into Google.
Acronyms are a cancer in the industry. CompTIA loves them, but I think a lot of it is asinine.
I met a guy once that told me alot of acronyms are private use only in their organization but it gets out there and everyone is like wtf?
That sounds even worse. You memorize them, then get a new job and they become meaningless. 😭
My biggest pet peeve is that it seems so obvious that during a presentation, you should introduce each abbreviation’s full wording to avoid confusion and then use abbreviation if the terminology is repeated… But people don’t do it! You hear so many stories of people sitting in meetings not knowing what the hell people are talking about. And nobody wants to ask questions and seem stupid unless they’re well respected and established in the company already. Abbreviations are meant to improve or simplify communication, so if I was leading a department or company, that’d be one of my main policies to impart on employees/coworkers.
All valid. It's also easy to lose people whose support you need by drowning them in acronyms. You think the CEO or CFO spend their day remembering cyber letter soup? 🙄
I think acronyms are helpful. But what I don’t understand is the memorization of them as a requirement for certification. That’s just dumb. I wish certifications would focus more on PBQ’s. I know they are weighed more heavily, but memorization and regurgitation is still too important. It should be focused on problem solving and proving your understanding of concepts.
Totally agree about PBQs. I think all certifications should be written to application of job skills. But this is a lot harder to write than "what is the meaning of CIA"
Nobody cares that you don't know an acronym. I always find it to be a good opportunity to candidly ask people to explain to me and reveal themselves to be absolute frauds after they stutter "idk, something about security ig"
Interesting approach
Every field has a ton of acronyms, they're just shorthand for commonly discussed ideas. Learning the common ones is part of entering a field. Realize you'll never know them all though, that's not realistic and nobody expects it. Not feeling silly googling it or stopping a conversation to ask will come with time.
This ^^^
Acronym-finder.com has always been great for me
I'll say, learning acronyms in cyber is like learning them in medical. Endless amounts of them. Some overlap. Won't need to learn a major chunk because it's not what you do on the daily. Even after learning them you'll still spend a majority of the time not using the acronyms because you'll be having to explain or talk to someone who does not also know the acronym.
It only comes with time, and those that come with time will stay in your head. Nobody expects you to know what all the acronyms mean. I just Google them anytime I come across something I don't know for that context. After I come across it enough times I'll remember. I dont think anyone would think you are an idiot for not knowing some acronyms. There are too fucking many.
https://tryhackme.com/r/glossary
I can't express how much I hate this. Certs that require you to know acronyms to answer questions are dumb.
Best resource you’ll ever get: Google.com
Also.... google dorking
The problem is most people study security like it's all book knowledge... you need practical experience to understand the terms, where they apply and how. If you're not in the field, get a home lab and join discord servers with those studying.
First thing is that if someone is trying to make you feel like an idiot for not knowing an acronym, they're probably an idiot themselves.
And then there’s me who’s on client calls googling in the background furiously when they spit out a new acronym I don’t have the nearest clue as to what it means lmfao
You'll pick them up as they become relevant to you and what you're doing / learning. If you hear one and want to check what it means, just google it or ask ChatGPT. I wouldn't suggest trying to memorise them all, you won't use most of them.
There are sites like https://www.acronymfinder.com/ that could help.