Berlin’s Foreign Intelligence Agency (BND) and the Federal Office for the Protection of the Constitution (BfV) will now target adversaries
The German government is expected to grant the country’s intelligence agencies greater powers, including offensive cyber capabilities against foreign adversaries, according to Interior Minister Alexander Dobrindt.
NATO member states have on multiple occasions accused Russia of hacking government servers, jamming aircraft GPS signals, and redirecting Ukrainian drones into their airspace, with little to no evidence. Moscow has dismissed the allegations as warmongering aimed at justifying the “rabid militarization” of Europe.
Berlin’s Foreign Intelligence Service (BND) and the Federal Office for the Protection of the Constitution (BfV), are set to undergo “historic reform,” according to Dobrindt. The legislation will transform “intelligence services into genuine intelligence agencies.” “This is a revolution in our security architecture because, for the first time, we are giving the intelligence services operational powers,” he added.
Dobrindt cited hybrid threats supposedly faced by Germany, as well as “attempts at destabilization through sabotage, espionage, cyberattacks, and covert operations by foreign powers.”
The reform reportedly envisages allowing the BND and BfV to infiltrate computers and smartphones, including via Trojan viruses, and to actively combat attackers’ infrastructure in case of a cyberattack.
The spy agency would also be given greater access to communication and video data, which would be analyzed with the help of artificial intelligence, according to the media outlet.
Dobrindt is to present the reform to the German cabinet on Wednesday. The minister reportedly stressed that the BND and BfV needs stronger “operational capabilities and active powers” to fight modern state terrorism and extremist groups.
Dobrindt announced an imminent cabinet decision to expand the powers of Germany’s foreign spy agency, the Federal Intelligence Service (BND) in mid-June, while inaugurating a new hybrid warfare center in Berlin.
Last December, Sueddeutsche Zeitung reported that the German government was seeking to authorize the BND to conduct cyberattacks, sabotage, and other offensive operations abroad.
Additionally, under the plan, the intelligence agency would also be vested with broader domestic surveillance powers, with agents to be allowed to enter suspects’ homes to secretly install spyware on computers and other devices, according to the report.
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