Cybersecurity and Simondon's Concretization Theory
This paper argues that Gilbert Simondon’s theory of the origin and development of technical objects helps us identify faulty theoretical assumptions within computer science and cybersecurity. In particular, Simondon’s view is that the process of the ‘individuation’ of technical objects can have similarities with the development of living beings – a view that stands in stark contrast with hylomorphic and reductionist views of technical objects currently common in computer science. We argue that those common hylomorphic approaches to software development lead to excessive modularity in software applications, which in turn results in less secure systems.
We argue that software development will be more secure if it takes inspiration from the development of living beings and refocuses on the dynamic reciprocal relationship between software applications and their technical and social environment.