A control unit having a plurality of error shutdown interfaces by which, upon activation, in each case one or more components to be controlled by the control unit is/are able to be switched off. The control unit is set up to run one or more different applications, each of which is equipped to trigger an error shutdown if necessary, the control unit additionally being set up to provide internal interfaces for the one or more applications. The internal interfaces and the error shutdown interfaces are predefinably assignable to each other, so that in response to an invocation of one of the internal interfaces, the one or more error shutdown interfaces assigned to it is/are activated. A method for operation of the control unit is also described.