Critical Infrastructure

There are 16 critical infrastructure sectors whose assets, systems, and networks, whether physical or virtual, are considered so vital to the United States that their incapacitation or destruction would have a debilitating effect on security, national economic security, national public health or safety, or any combination thereof. Key resources are publicly or privately controlled resources essential to the minimal operations of the economy and government.

Presidential Policy Directive 21 (PPD-21): Critical Infrastructure Security and Resilience advances a national policy to strengthen and maintain secure, functioning, and resilient critical infrastructure. This directive supersedes Homeland Security Presidential Directive 7.

Critical Infrastructure are divided into 16 Sectors:

  • Agriculture and Food
  • Chemical & Hazardous Materials Industry
  • Defense Industrial Base
  • Government Facilities
  • Nuclear Reactors, Materials and Waste
  • Communications
  • Financial 
  • Critical Manufacturing
  • Emergency Services
  • Information Technology
  • Transportation
  • Commercial Facilities
  • Dams
  • Energy
  • Healthcare and Public Health
  • Water and Water Treatment Systems