Each of 120 community members belongs to one of three digital-access tiers and sits inside a social network (edges = communication ties, denser within a tier than across tiers). A city rolls out a security policy — e.g. facial-recognition surveillance or a data-sharing consent scheme — and each person's participation level Pi ∈ [0,1] (awareness + ability to take part in shaping the policy) evolves by network diffusion:
dPᵢ/dt = βᵢ·(1−Pᵢ)·Σⱼ wᵢⱼPⱼ/degᵢ + τ·cᵢ·(1−Pᵢ) − δ·Pᵢ
βᵢ = tier's base diffusion rate, reduced by the divide-gap slider for Low tier
wᵢⱼ = edge weight between i and j (network diffusion term)
τ = policy-transparency slider (direct public-information channel, bypasses the network)
cᵢ = tier's transparency-channel sensitivity (Low/Medium benefit most)
δ = slow forgetting/decay term, kept constant
- Digital divide gap — how much slower the Low-access tier absorbs information through the network, relative to High-access. 0% = everyone diffuses information equally regardless of access; 100% = the Low tier is nearly cut off from peer-to-peer diffusion.
- Policy transparency — a direct, access-independent information channel (public notices, plain-language disclosures) that raises participation for every tier without relying on the social network — this is the main policy lever that can offset the divide.
- Community outreach — adds extra bridging edges between the Low-access cluster and the rest of the network (targeted digital-inclusion programs), so information can reach excluded members through new social ties.
- Equity gap readout is High-tier mean participation minus Low-tier mean participation — the core inequality this simulator visualizes. It only closes when transparency or outreach compensate for a large divide gap.
This is a purely defensive/analytical model of policy communication equity — it contains no attack code, exploit, or intrusion technique. It is meant to make visible how a security or surveillance policy's social rollout can quietly exclude the same groups it is supposed to protect, unless transparency and outreach are designed in from the start.