A methodological approach for characterisation of critical national infrastructure

This article presents a methodological approach for the characterisation of critical national infrastructure (CNI). Despite several approaches to identifying CNI, there has not been any universally acceptable way that is agreeable because a country's CNI priority may differ. CNI enabled by information and communications technology (ICT) is usually referred to as critical national information infrastructure (CNII). Thus, the security of CNII requires a far-reaching approach that is harmonised and agile to mutually respond to global cyber threats. Without proportionate safeguards, the increasingly interconnected and interdependent infrastructures can create vulnerability opportunities that can cause failures with cascading or escalating effects. Consequently, proper characterisation, categorisation and designation of CNI are vital to effective CNII protection and resilience. We approached the study by extensive review, analysis and synthesis of CNI of selected countries around the globe. Then, we applied a multi-criteria decision making (MCDM) to show how CNI can be derived, and designated.