how i actually got into security without a degree

cybersecurity · Jul 7, 2025 · 1 min read

i am italian, i did not study computer science, and for a long time i thought security was something other people were allowed to do. it is not. here is the path that worked for me.

start with the boring stuff

• learn how the network actually moves, not the tool that watches it
• read the source of something you use daily until you find something that surprises you
• learn one scripting language properly enough to automate your own boredom

then do damage, but only to yourself

i broke my own router, my own site, and my own laptop in that order. each time i wrote down exactly what i assumed, then exactly why the assumption was wrong. that list is worth more than any course.

the habit that matters is writing things down. an exploit you cannot explain is a party trick, not knowledge.

what i would tell past me

• do not start with a framework. start with the protocol
• read one advisory end to end. you learn more from one real thing than from a list of topics
• write your own tooling. a script you wrote will teach you what a tool hides
• italians are not behind. the internet does not care where you learned from, only whether you did

i still have a lot to learn. i am just no longer waiting to be told i am allowed to.