PhD Student

Security Governance of Critical Infrastructure Protection in Germany (working title)

Poster (in German only) (opens in new tab)

Overall, the protection of critical infrastructures is a joint task of the public and private sectors, whereby companies are made accountable despite the fact that their core competence does not lie in the area of security. Indeed, large parts of Germany's infrastructures are operated by private-sector companies. Yet many of these infrastructures are considered to play a key role in daily life, and their uninterrupted functioning is essential for maintaining a stable social order. This attribution of relevance is the central argument of many government strategies and concepts for the protection of critical infrastructures (CIP). Differences between governmental requirements and operational implementation can be referred to as security gaps (or implementation deficits). These are analyzed in the dissertation project using the example of a base infrastructure of the “Transportation and Traffic” sector.

The identified security gap is addressed using three explanatory factors. These include, firstly, the expression of shared basic requirements with a focus on a shared conception of criticality and the understanding of responsibility. Second, the relationship between the actors (federal government, states, cities/municipalities and CI operators) is analyzed. As a third factor, the current Corona pandemic is included with regard to its explanatory role as an external driving force in the manifestation of the security gap.

The dissertation project uses a qualitative methodology approach (in the form of expert interviews and content analysis of relevant documents) and employs a critical perspective on security governance as a conceptual basis.