Within the framework of the Cross-sectional format „Security and Openness“, this presentation investigates whether and how national discourses on cyber and IT security are translated into intra-organizational conflicts about governance structures and resource allocation. The study relies on various case studies about IT security in German scientific and higher education institutions.

The findings show that IT security leads to securitization moves that call for increased centralized control and resource allocation in technical departments. However, this securitization move is of limited success due to other organizational norms such openness and the value of freedom of research and teaching and the associated decentralized governance of universities.

The audio file can be downloaded here.