Legal Dimension of the Protection of Critical Infrastructure – Selected Aspects

Aim: As part of this article, an attempt was made to present the legislative process in Poland regarding critical infrastructure, for which valid is the Act of 26 April 2007 on crisis management, specifying, inter alia, authorities competent in crisis management and their tasks and principles of operation in this area as well as implementing acts issued on its basis. The introduced legal regulations define both the concept of critical infrastructure, its protection and activities related to the prevention of crisis situations, reacting in the event of their occurrence and preparation to take control over them, as well as removing their effects and recreating key resources. Introduction: Regulations concerning the protection of critical infrastructure are included in legal acts covering various areas of the country’s functioning, including telecommunications activities, production and trade in fuels and electricity, performance of defence tasks by entrepreneurs, creation of strategic reserves, powers of the minister competent for the State Treasury in some companies, protection of persons and the property. The protection of critical infrastructure is related to the raison d’état, which indicates the need to make special efforts to protect the country’s key infrastructure. Therefore, it is reasonable to present selected legal elements needed to protect critical infrastructure, especially those issues that ensure the continuity of the operation of public administration bodies, which are to ensure the safety of the citizens. Methodology: The article was prepared based on the analysis of the literature on the subject and the analysis of legal acts in the area of strengthening the concept of critical infrastructure, taking into account the current situation related to the pandemic and, consequently, the loss of some officers and employees. During the analysis of the conducted research, compact publications, acts of Polish law as well as guidelines and recommendations published on the websites of governmental institutions were used. Conclusions: In the protection of critical infrastructure, there is a need to introduce legal regulations within the framework of cooperation between institutions. The preparation of effective activities in the area of critical infrastructure requires a comprehensive approach, including: physical, technical, personal, ICT, legal protection, as well as assistance from the government in the reconstruction of the damaged element. Each of the areas mentioned above is a complex set of activities requiring general and specialist knowledge, sometimes expert knowledge, extensive practical experience (using the so-called good practices), risk analysis skills, and risk prediction (profiling). Keywords: act on crisis management, legal acts, crisis management, protection of critical infrastructure, identification Type of article: review article