If Words Fail You, Try Talking In English

May 1, 2003 12:00 PM, Larry Anderson, Editor

They say there is power in words, but how often does the misuse of words — especially inappropriate use of jargon — get in the way of communication? The thing about jargon is that after a while we don't even know we are using it, until somebody we are talking to gets that puzzled, dropped-jaw look and we have to back up and explain again what we are talking about.

The Department of Homeland Security has undertaken the mission of communicating with the general public about security threats, but sometimes the words can get in the way. That's the gist of a study by the Harvard School of Public Health. The survey shows that only 73 percent of Americans are aware of the terrorism alert level (i.e., yellow or orange, etc.) and that only 24 percent have heard the term “sheltering in place” and understand what it means (It involves staying at home in a room without a window). Americans are also confused by the term “evacuation” — does it mean leave the community or go to a community center?

One can only assume that Tom Ridge has spent too much time talking about duct tape and not enough time explaining the basics.

The same could be said for many security practitioners, who are more likely than not to speak to company employees about security threats in their own terms rather than at a conversational level the employees can relate to. Terms such as access points, countermeasures, and even intrusion detection and CCTV may not be immediately understood by internal customers. Security education should begin, not by talking down to employees, but by at least talking to them on their own terms.

Terminology can also get in the way of communicating with the IT department, increasingly important for security directors in these networked times. But while security directors want to discuss inputs and outputs, the IT people may prefer to talk about rules. And who hasn't approached an IT guy and had a simple question answered with a bombardment of acronyms and jargon? Once again, it's time to back up and define our terms before we can proceed.

Finally, how often do security professionals find themselves challenged by their efforts to communicate with upper management? At the corporate level, it's all about capital costs, return on investment, etc. etc. By learning the language, security people can more effectively argue their case for more resources to get the job done. You don't want any misunderstandings when it comes to money.

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