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Short abstract

The paper outlines a project proposal aimed at examining the influence of changing security dynamics and threat perceptions on the design of digital infrastructures through a case study of the standardization practices of the European Telecommunications Standards Institute (ETSI).

Long abstract

Digital infrastructures have become foundational to political, social, and economic life in the European Union (EU). Far from being neutral tools, they play a constitutive role in contemporary societies. Today, the rule of law, and core political values are no longer enforced solely through legal text and institutions, but increasingly through technical architectures. In times of digital constitutionalism, constitutional principles do not merely regulate digital technologies but are operationalized through code, protocols, and standards. At the same time, shifting geopolitical security dynamics are transforming how digital infrastructures are imagined: from enablers of openness and integration to strategic assets requiring resilience and control.

Against this backdrop, the project investigates how evolving security dynamics shape the technical design of digital infrastructures. How do threat perceptions influence the value systems embedded in the classification systems of technical standards? What trade-offs emerge between freedom, privacy, security, and state control? And how are changing imaginaries of international order translated into technical specifications?

The project develops a conceptual framework that bridges digital constitutionalism and science and technology studies, foregrounding technical standardization as a key site where constitutional values materialize. It focuses on standardization processes at the European Telecommunications Standards Institute (ETSI), a central arena in which value-laden classification systems become embedded in binding technical norms. Through an in-depth case study of ETSI’s standard-setting practices, the project traces how security concerns are translated into concrete design choices that shape digital infrastructures across Europe.

(Note: Contribution to the workshop format)