National security commensurate with threats: the indispensable contribution of civil society
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National security is a responsibility that the state must exercise alongside other actors in society. At the beginning of 2025, the Cybersecurity Framework Law (Law 21663) classified private companies as Critical Operators whose protection is a condition for the security of the whole. In October 2025, the National Public Security Policy 2025-2031 was published, recognizing the private sector as a component of the national response. Both instruments propose that national security is now a shared responsibility between the state and various actors in society, who must contribute their capabilities in the interest of national interests.
The following analysis argues that Chilean civil society has a structural and necessary role in national security. This concept includes academia, the private sector, technological innovation ecosystems, active citizens, and other actors whose capabilities are essential for effectively addressing threats that the state needs to tackle with the support of society as a whole.
1. Why does national security today require the contribution of civil society?
Chile has ceased to be an exception in terms of security in Latin America and faces a scenario in this area where threats coexist that transcend traditional categories of public security or national defense. Two examples illustrate this reality. First, the phenomenon of transnational organized crime corrupts institutions, utilizes private services and infrastructure, and subjugates territories where the state is absent or weakened. Second, threats in cyberspace simultaneously affect critical infrastructure and the information systems of public institutions, without distinction between civilian and military targets. In both cases, the response requires the coordinated participation of state actors and civil society with complementary capabilities.
In the face of such threats, there are strong arguments justifying the participation of civil society beyond civic duty. First, the private sector has a direct interest in national security, as insecurity affects its operations and threatens the continuity of its business. Engaging in security is not only a contribution to the common good but also a rational decision that protects its own interests. Second, civil society possesses capabilities that the state does not have and cannot develop alone, as academia provides analytical independence and methodological rigor; the private sector offers speed of innovation and access to critical data; and citizens provide territorial presence and community legitimacy. Third, security policies designed without the participation of civil society tend to lack adherence and sustainability over time. In other words, participation is not merely instrumental but a condition for the democratic legitimacy of national security.
Therefore, the relevant question is not whether civil society should participate in national security, but how to structure that participation effectively, coordinated, and sustained. The following describes the components of civil society with the greatest potential for contribution and the institutional conditions that make it possible.
2. Components of civil society and their contribution to national security
2.1. Academia as a generator of knowledge and evaluation
Both universities with applied research capabilities and specialized centers in national security, defense, and public safety constitute the first component. Their function is to produce the knowledge that the state needs and is unable to generate, aligning their research capabilities with the priorities and requirements of the institutions responsible for national security. Among other aspects, empirical evidence on security phenomena, rigorous evaluation of ongoing policies, analytical frameworks for emerging threats, and methodologies for monitoring transnational organized crime.
The School of Government at the Pontifical Catholic University of Chile and the Center for Studies in Citizen Security at the University of Chile, to name a few, are examples of how academia can generate evidence for policy design, participate in legislative debates, and contribute to institutional improvements. Their interlocutors include the Ministry of Public Security; the Ministry of Defense and the Armed Forces, Carabineros de Chile, and the Police Investigations (PDI); the National Prosecutor’s Office, and the National Cybersecurity Agency (ANCI).
This component has the capabilities to reduce the current gap between available evidence and public policy decisions in national security, defense, and public safety, providing rigorous and independent inputs from the political cycle.
2.2. Private sector as a factor of resilience and prevention
The second component includes companies from critical sectors (telecommunications, energy, banking, logistics, and retail), business associations, and private security companies. The most illustrative case of how the private sector can be established as a national security actor is that of Critical Operators, a figure created by the Cybersecurity Framework Law, which explicitly recognizes that certain private companies perform functions whose interruption jeopardizes the security of the entire country. [1].This model should be the starting point for thinking about the broader role of the private sector in the field of national security. In addition to protecting infrastructure whose resilience is a condition for the country’s security and reporting cyber incidents, these actors can implement prevention programs in their operational environments and share intelligence on threats with authorities. Their counterparts in the state are the National Intelligence Agency (ANI) and the ANCI, in matters of intelligence and cybersecurity, respectively; the Ministry of Public Security; the National Prosecutor’s Office, and Carabineros de Chile and the PDI, in the prevention of organized crime. The idea is for the business sector to become an active actor in the face of threats that directly affect its operations and profitability.2.3. Universities and centers with specialized training programs
Universities with specialized programs in national security and defense, as well as public safety, and networks of independent experts constitute the core of this component. Their task is to train the next generation of public and private leaders in these areas through accredited quality undergraduate and graduate programs, as well as the necessary high-level advisors.
Various diploma programs currently offered by Chilean universities on public safety, citizen security management, and international security are examples of the above. Furthermore, these organizations serve as a bridge between specialized knowledge and political and institutional decision-makers, creating opportunities that connect Chilean professionals with international networks of experts. Their interlocutors in the state include, among others, the Ministry of Public Security, the Ministry of National Defense, the ANI, the ANCI, and the Defense and Security Commissions of the National Congress. Through the actions of these civil society actors, it is feasible to close the gap of specialized human capital that Chile faces today. Thus, they can be recruited by the state and increase the efficiency of public management.
2.4. Technological innovation ecosystem
The fourth component is the most nascent in Chile and has the greatest potential for transformation.
Private technology startups, focusing on applications related to national security, defense, and public safety; university innovation labs in cybersecurity, robotics, and artificial intelligence; and venture capital funds oriented toward dual-use technology would configure an ecosystem that would be vital for modernizing the state’s security capabilities. Their function is to develop technology with direct application in the fields of defense and public safety (drones, cybersecurity, applied AI, border surveillance, intelligence analysis), prototype solutions at timelines and costs that the national industry cannot match, and also transfer technical university knowledge to state institutions.
An example of this is the Cyber Defense Laboratory developed by the Pontifical Catholic University of Chile and the Army, where technologies and training models in cyber defense are tested to enhance the protection of various systems. [2] . The state counterparts for these initiatives would be the Ministry of National Defense, the Armed Forces, Carabineros de Chile, and the Police Investigations, as primary clients and guides for requirements; Corfo, in financing dual-use R&D; and the aforementioned agencies in the fields of intelligence and cybersecurity. The goal is to create an innovation ecosystem in Chile and reduce external technological dependence in sensitive national security matters.
2.5.Citizens as national security actorsCitizens, as active subjects within civil society, contribute to national security in various ways. Private funding of think tanks and specialized training programs is one form of contribution, as it financially supports a knowledge ecosystem and fosters the consolidation of a culture and strategic thinking at the national level.
[3] . On the other hand, organizing and participating in citizen debate forums on national security, defense, and public safety contributes to the formation of an informed citizenry. Additionally, Neighborhood Councils serve as a means of articulation between citizens, municipalities, and Carabineros in identifying local threats and needs in public safety. Moreover, the individual respect—by authorities, opinion leaders, and citizens in general—for the fundamental institutions of the state responsible for national security, defense, and public safety is the foundation of legitimacy upon which the necessary but absent security architecture of the country should rest.
Finally, the participation of former conscript soldiers and citizens in reservist centers of the Armed Forces is perhaps the most direct expression of that commitment, putting individual capabilities at the service of the state’s needs. These actions represent a free and voluntary expression of civic commitment to national security as a public good.2.6.Social cohesion and national identity
The last component is the least conventional from a security perspective, but no less relevant. Opinion leaders, media with national and regional reach, cultural industries, educational institutions, and churches are called to consolidate the social fabric upon which national security rests. Their contribution should operate through three mechanisms: first, strengthening a national narrative of shared identity that unites society in the face of current and future security challenges; second, building and sustaining citizen trust in state institutions; and, finally, consolidating the social capital that makes communities more resilient to deliberate fragmentation.
Certainly, the publication of books of national historical narratives that enhance national identity and campaigns by private actors promoting dialogue and civic awareness are cases that contribute in this area. The value of these initiatives for national security lies in the fact that no public policy can replace what a cohesive society, with a robust identity and trust in its institutions, can achieve for the common good.
Table 1 — The components of civil society and national security 3. Conditions for this role to be effective
Recognizing the role of civil society in national security is not enough, as the effectiveness of its initiatives will depend on certain institutional conditions.
The first is the creation of a national security architecture that coordinates the actions mentioned within the framework of a national security strategy.
The second condition is the creation of enabling legal frameworks.
The Critical Operators, created by Law 21663, are an excellent example. This case can be considered the first formal recognition in which private actors have functions in the field of national security. However, equivalent frameworks are necessary for other components of civil society that currently operate without formal institutional recognition. To advance in this direction, the state should establish systematic incentives for the formation of reservists; grant legal recognition to think tanks as active actors in the national security ecosystem, and create mechanisms for linking university technological innovation with the needs of the state. The third condition is sustained financing. Applied research and a technological innovation ecosystem cannot depend on annual budget cycles or the will of each administration. This type of medium- and long-term initiative requires commitments that transcend the current government. Therefore, it is necessary to explore multi-year funds and public-private co-financing mechanisms that provide stability and continuity to these initiatives.
The last condition is independence as a quality requirement. Civil society will add value when it operates and develops initiatives with autonomy from the state. The intention is to complement it with evidence and proposals that the state apparatus cannot generate. To this end, the state should establish transparency standards as conditions for institutional recognition and financing of civil society actors contributing to national security matters.
Table 2 — Components of civil society: conditions and expected advances Conclusions
Civil society in Chile has the capabilities to contribute to the benefit of national interests and enhance the security condition of citizens. It is reasonable to assume that these actors do not need to be convinced to contribute to national security; the examples described above demonstrate that in many cases they are already doing so in a fragmented and institutionally invisible manner. The challenge for the state is to recognize that contribution, formalize it, and enhance it with a deliberate strategy of whole-of-society
Alejandro Amigo
Senior Researcher, AthenaLab [1]Cybersecurity Framework Law, at https://www.bcn.cl/leychile/navegar?idNorma=1202434[2]
UC Innovation Center and Army inaugurate Cyber Defense Laboratory, at https://www.uc.cl/noticias/centro-de-innovacion-uc-y-ejercito-de-chile-inauguran-nuevo-laboratorio-de-ciberdefensa/
[3]
The concept whole-of-society
