Streszcz. ang. Bibliogr. s. 235-236.

The paper represents an interdisciplinary approach on service continuity of critical infrastructure (CI). The legal and technological arguments are taken into account with aim to illustrate crucial points of this aspect. The need to protect critical systems infrastructure is quite natural when we accept state security standpoint. In the recent years world leaders saw the need to protect such structures as gas, power, water and tele-communications networks. Protection is based on two pillars, the first is law and the second is technology. In both areas the development depends on the cooperation on the international level and it is the effect of the technological and legal experience. Security of energy critical infrastructure however is a challenge not only for institutions but also for legal and technological concepts. Firstly, state interest has to deal with private owners of CI. In fact, legal solutions has to be analyzed with much broader perspective within European legal experience. The paper will analyze how far and why the state should be responsible for the maintenance and protection of CI. Thus, the legal strategies towards CI are compared with the ideas of Elinor Ostrom’s governing the commons as way to find an effective solution. Secondly, on the technological level, the governing of CI is analyzed in the context of setting technical standards and recommendations. International and national standardization bodies are responsible for resolving safety and security problems. In that respect certain types of energy recommendations will be taken into account. The paper opens the discussion on the interconnectedness between technological and legal spheres and the importance of effective cooperation between them for CI security.