The German government approved a draft law on Wednesday that would substantially expand the powers of its intelligence services, loosening postwar restrictions on data collection, cyber operations, and surveillance. The legislation, which must still pass parliament, follows two security incidents in a month and reflects longstanding requests from the country's foreign and domestic intelligence agencies.
German Cabinet Approves Draft Law Expanding Intelligence Agency Powers
The German government approved a draft law on Wednesday that would substantially expand the powers of its intelligence services, loosening postwar restrictions on data collection, cyber operations, and surveillance. The legislation, which must still pass parliament, follows two security incidents in a month and reflects longstanding requests from the country's foreign and domestic intelligence agencies.
The draft law comes after a car ramming at Berlin's annual Pride parade in late July, carried out by a German-born Islamist known to the authorities, and the discovery last week of a drone carrying explosives near a Ukrainian cargo plane at Leipzig airport, described as a key defence transport hub.
Interior Minister Alexander Dobrindt told Bild newspaper that the changes amounted to turning Germany's intelligence services into 'genuine secret services,' adding it was 'high time' Germany positioned itself 'to be competitive and on an equal footing with our partner services around the world.'
The federal foreign intelligence service, the BND, which turned 70 this year and is led by former ambassador to Ukraine Martin Jäger, would gain new powers to confront threats from state actors including Russia and China, with assistance from artificial intelligence. German authorities say the threat level has risen markedly since Russia's full-scale invasion of Ukraine in 2022, with agents linked to Moscow allegedly carrying out sabotage, espionage, and cyberattacks against critical infrastructure and military equipment manufacturers.
According to the draft law's more than 700-page text, German intelligence personnel would be permitted to conduct 'hack-back' cyber operations, including manipulating or deleting data, altering weapons-building instructions, or rendering arms harmless during production. Digital payments to low-level agents employed on a one-off basis by foreign governments could also be blocked.
The use of force by intelligence personnel abroad would remain prohibited, keeping German agencies outside the operational scope of agencies such as the CIA, Mossad, or France's DGSE. However, agents would be permitted to carry weapons for self-defence more frequently without requiring explicit prior authorisation.
The BND and the domestic watchdog, the Office for the Protection of the Constitution (BfV), would be permitted to collect, store, and analyse larger volumes of data for longer periods using AI. The law would also make it easier to obtain authorisation for online searches and home surveillance of criminal suspects.
The government intends for the law to take effect by 1 January 2027. Germany would also expand independent oversight of both the BND and the BfV, supplementing existing parliamentary intelligence committee powers.
Chancellor Friedrich Merz's coalition government, described as unpopular, is under pressure to demonstrate it can improve security while respecting rights set out in Germany's Basic Law. Germany is also engaged in a broader rearmament programme, with Merz having pledged to make Germany's Bundeswehr Europe's strongest conventional army.
- The source does not specify which parliamentary parties or blocs are likely to support or oppose the legislation, beyond the Green party spokesperson's qualified criticism.
- The source does not detail what specific oversight powers the independent board would hold or how it would differ from existing parliamentary controls.
- The source does not explain what legal basis critics might use to mount court challenges, beyond noting that such challenges are possible.
- The source does not include a response from the BfV regarding the proposed expansion of its powers or the criticism directed at those provisions.
- The source does not clarify what existing restrictions would remain on data retention or AI-assisted analysis after the law takes effect.
Read the original at The Guardian