What do you believe is our most vulnerable critical infrastructure?
Critical infrastructure refers to foundational services that are critical to a country's security and economy.
This is usually considered a priority for development, maintenance, security, information security, and
resilience (Spacey, 2018). There are 16 critical infrastructure sectors in the United States that are
considered to be so critical that if incapacitated or destroyed the result would have a crippling effect on
security, national economic security, national public health or safety, or any combination of these. Some
examples of critical infrastructure consist of transportation, energy, health, water, government, food,
communications, information technologies, safety, and finance (Spacey, 2018). All of the examples listed
above are of extreme importance, but I believe the most vulnerable critical infrastructure is energy.
Why do you say this?
America’s energy system faces many risks, including natural disasters, energy supply disruptions, cyber-
attacks, and deliberate acts of terrorism. A disruption in one part of this complex and interconnected
network can easily impact other parts of the system, resulting in serious human and economic
consequences (Hartman, 2013).
In today’s environment, most infrastructure has become interdependent. For example, electricity powers
water treatment facilities, hospitals, government services, transportation, heating, cooling,
communications, etc. As the services listed above become more and more interdependent on each
other, the more vulnerable they become to disruptions (Pescaroli and Alexander, 2016). If the power
supply is interrupted, then there will be a domino effect that occurs to the critical infrastructure, which
can be more detrimental than the original event (Pescaroli and Alexander, 2016).
Recently the power went out at my home for several hours. The weather was very cold the day of the
outage and without power, the heating system was unable to warm my home. Without power, we were
unable to make dinner for the family, and since the power outage was widespread, we could not go out
to eat. Although this example is small in scale, the cascading effect of the power outage caused our
home to be very cold, threatened our stored food resources, interrupted our communications, limited
our use of our cellphones, since we were unable to charge them, and so on.
How would you enhance security regarding this type of infrastructure?
Unfortunately, the energy infrastructure is aging and there is a need to upgrade the power grid. Smart
grid technology will improve the electric power system's preparedness for emergencies, as well as give
improved input on grid operations, allowing for more accurate and timely reactions. Smart grids are
included in state energy assurance strategies to increase energy response times and reduce vulnerability
and risk. Smart meters, which give real-time electricity measurement, assist utilities in identifying
outages, improving emergency response, and preventing some outages completely (Hartman, 2013).
As the nation’s electric grid is upgraded, there is a potential for a cyber or terrorist attack on the
software, network, and data on the grid system. To mitigate against any terror or cyber-related attacks,
energy companies and organizations should perform regular vulnerability assessments and make
improvements where needed. Once the weakness is discovered, organizations must then develop new
tools and software to secure their weakness, or at least develop was to respond to situations that may
be affected by a cyber/terrorist attack.
How secure are our borders?
In recent years, securing the border has become a topic of heated debate. Regardless of which side of
the issue one may be on, the border is an area of vulnerability for homeland security. There are close to
2000 miles of the American border with Mexico. The U.S. Customs and Border Patrol (CBP) has a serious
problem when it comes to ensuring the integrity of our borders (Nemeth, 2016).
Is it important to secure our borders, and if so, why or why not? What would you propose to better
secure our borders?
The borders are vulnerable to illegal immigrants, illegal weapons and drugs, and trafficking of any kind
which makes it extremely important to secure the borders. In order to properly secure the borders, I
believe physical barriers are effective, and where possible, should be the primary way to secure the
border. There are other methods to secure the border that does not include a physical barrier like a wall.
I would propose updating and improving the ports of entry into the country and having them properly
staffed. I would also add sensor technology, where a physical barrier may not be feasible, which gives the
CBP another tool to track and locate individuals who are entering the country illegally.
Romans 13:1-3 says, “Let everyone be subject to the governing authorities, for there is no authority
except that which God has established. The authorities that exist have been established by
God. 2 Consequently, whoever rebels against the authority is rebelling against what God has
instituted, and those who do so will bring judgment on themselves. 3 For rulers hold no terror for those
who do right, but for those who do wrong. Do you want to be free from fear of the one in authority?
Then do what is right and you will be commended” (New International Version, 2011). Regardless of a
wall or no wall, individuals who enter any country should do so properly.
References
Hartman, K. (2013). Protecting the nation’s energy infrastructure: States address energy security.
National Conference of State Legislatures.
Pescaroli, G. & Alexander, D. (2016). Critical infrastructure, panarchies and the vulnerability paths of
cascading disasters. Natural Hazards. 82. 10.1007/s11069-016-2186-3.
Nemeth, C.P. P. (2016). Homeland security (3rd Edition). Taylor & Francis.
https://bookshelf.vitalsource.com/books/9781498749121
New International Bible. (2011). The NIV Bible. https://www.thenivbible.com/ (Original
work published 1978)
Spacey, J. (2018). What is critical infrastructure? Simplicable. Retrieved December 8, 2021, from
https://simplicable.com/new/critical-infrastructure#:~:text=What%20is%20Critical%20Infrastructure%3F
%201%20Transportation.%20Transportation%20infrastructure,Safety.%20...%2010%20Finance.
%20...%20More%20items...%20.
vulnerable to large-scale
cascading disruptions across
sectoral boundaries
As they grow more
interdependent, they become
more
vulnerable to large-scale
cascading disruptions across
sectoral boundaries
As they grow more
interdependent, they become
more
vulnerable to large-scale
cascading disruptions across
sectoral boundaries
As they grow more
interdependent, they become
more
vulnerable to large-scale
cascading disruptions across
sectoral boundaries
As they grow more
interdependent, they become
more
vulnerable to large-scale
cascading disruptions across
sectoral boundaries
As they grow more
interdependent, they become
more
vulnerable to large-scale
cascading disruptions across
sectoral boundaries
As they grow more
interdependent, they become
more
