CRIMINALIZATION OF INSTITUTIONAL INACTION IN DIGITAL GOVERNANCE: RISKS TO THE SECURITY OF CRITICAL INFRASTRUCTURE FACILITIES

The article presents a criminological analysis of the phenomenon of institutional inaction in the context of digital governance, in particular with regard to critical infrastructure facilities. The digital transformation of the public sector, despite the declared advantages - openness, automation, anti-corruption effect, - in practice does not exclude, and in some cases even intensifies, manifestations of official passivity, which leads to violations of citizens’ rights, blocking of investment projects, delaying administrative procedures and the formation of shadow mechanisms of influence. The author emphasizes that in the conditions of the availability of technical capabilities for decision-making, the inaction of government bodies acquires a new criminological quality: it is no longer just an organizational problem, but appears as a potentially punishable form of official misconduct. Based on the analysis of practice in the field of ensuring the security of critical infrastructure facilities in Ukraine, in particular examples of delayed approval of documentation, failure to enter data into digital registers, sabotage through electronic document management systems, the author introduces into scientific circulation the concepts of “digital official misconduct” and “regulatory imitation” as markers of the latest latent violations. The text justifies the need to form an updated approach to the qualification of institutional inaction in the digital environment, taking into account the obligations recorded in digital traces. Special attention is paid to the development of proposals for the criminalization of inaction that has consequences in the sphere of public interest, as well as the risks of abuse of such norms. The conclusions formulate directions for improving national legislation and prospects for further interdisciplinary research at the intersection of criminology, public administration and digital law.