What do the water system in Flint, Michigan, the electrical grid in Puerto Rico and your search engine have in common? They are all critical infrastructure – systems essential to everyday life.
People expect critical infrastructure to be reliable, to minimize risk and to promote public well-being. When it fails – such as when lead seepage poisoned Flint’s water supply in 2014, or when nearly all of Puerto Rico’s power went out on New Year’s Eve in 2024 – the public expects risks to be mitigated and problems to be addressed.
Today’s critical infrastructure includes food and water systems, roads and bridges, and financial and health systems. Much of the digital technology everyone depends on is also critical infrastructure. People depend on search engines for information, social media for public announcements and important communications, and AI-powered services for analysis and decision-making. All are essential to function in modern civic society.
When search engines opportunistically shape the information that people seek, social media is polluted with misinformation, and AI-driven services serve up unsafe recommendations or “digital slop,” many people chalk it up to the cost of engaging with the commercial sector and feel powerless to control their information – or one form of “digital resignation.”
