Björn Vetter
MBA - Krisenmanagement - Feuerwehr – Rettungsdienst
Polizei - Katastrophenschutz - @GEOBYTE SOFTWARE GmbH
DIGITAL SOVEREIGNTY
The German Firefighters Association has provided another important impetus with its position paper on the future of disaster relief in the context of civil defense, published.
Björn Vetter:
The German Firefighters Association has provided another important impetus with its position paper on the future of disaster relief in the context of civil defense, published. The paper addresses in detail the changed geopolitical and security situation, also referring to lessons learned from the war in Ukraine.
The focus is on specific capability requirements in civil protection. These include technology, vehicles, equipment, protected infrastructure, logistics, firefighting water supply, CBRN protection, mobility in the event of infrastructure destruction, and self-sufficient operational capability. The document thus makes it clear that civil defense is not only a matter of concepts, but also of material resources and resilient structures.
Topics that have long preoccupied me, and which I am very receptive to, include digitalization, leadership, situational awareness, and redundant voice and data communication networks. Anyone who cannot quickly gather, evaluate, and make information available across organizations in complex situations loses the ability to act.
However, in my view, one essential, absolutely crucial point remains unaddressed: digital sovereignty.
It is not enough to demand digitalization if new critical dependencies arise at the same time. A digitized civil protection system that relies on foreign software, externally hosted cloud services, or third-party controlled platforms for core functions creates additional vulnerabilities. This affects not only large specialized applications but also fundamental components such as geodata, map databases, identity services, interfaces, push notifications, and communication solutions.
Especially in the context of civil defense, digital sovereignty is not a technical side issue, but a question of resilience and security. Digital systems in civil protection must not only be efficient, but also controllable, robust, and as independent as possible from external influences.
Photo: ©Björn Vetter
“All rights belong to Björn Vetter”
