Information gathering

Do associations or political parties have programmes that are constitutionally sound or are their activities incompatible with our free democratic basic order? Does a specific extremist individual or group belong to the terrorist spectrum and is about to commit an attack on German soil?

Finding early answers to questions such as these would not be possible for the German domestic intelligence services if they did not gather, categorise and assess information. Reliable information is necessary to keep the Federal Republic of Germany safe from terrorism and political as well as religious extremism.

Information gathering using open sources

It may come as a surprise, but the German domestic intelligence services obtain a large portion of their information from generally accessible sources.

For example, they analyse relevant newspapers and examine the speeches and statements quoted therein from individuals who are considered to belong to extremist organisations. The information that the domestic intelligence services of the Federation and the federal states draw on also includes leaflets, party programmes, statutes of associations and relevant websites.

Attending public events represents another important source of intelligence. Additionally, the German domestic intelligence services carry out interviews on their own initiative in order to obtain pertinent information. Participation in these interviews is voluntary; the staff of the German domestic intelligence services who conduct them openly present themselves as such.

The information collected in these ways is in many cases sufficient for the German domestic intelligence services to fulfil their statutory tasks.

Information gathering using covert techniques

It is in the nature of things that individuals and groups of intelligence concern do not always organise in public. They tend to express their views and motives behind closed doors and prepare their plans for achieving their goals in secret.

The fact that they act in secret, i.e. that they deliberately mask their intentions, is the inherent advantage that extremists, terrorists and spies have in laying their plans. To be able to monitor such concealed or secret activities, the German domestic intelligence services have permission to make use of covert techniques for information gathering.

These covert techniques include in particular

• surveillance,
• the use of confidential sources,
• the interception of mail and telecommunications as well as
• Internet monitoring.

However, the domestic intelligence services of the Federation and the federal states may only use covert techniques in accordance with very strict legal conditions. In using such techniques, the services infringe citizens’ fundamental rights; that is why our services must always observe the principle of proportionality. Covert techniques are therefore a matter of last resort, to be used only if no other (less intrusive) means of information gathering is equally suitable and if implementing the measure in question is not clearly disproportionate to the expected benefit. In no event must the German domestic intelligence services violate the core area of private life, which includes a person’s most intimate personal sphere.

These strict legal criteria apply not only when it comes to authorising covert measures, but also as far as their implementation is concerned, which requires great sensitivity. Only staff having undergone extensive training may be tasked with employing covert techniques for information gathering.

Surveillance

Surveillance refers to the covert monitoring of individuals and places, which enables the German domestic intelligence services to obtain important information on the places targets go to, on where they meet contacts and on who these contacts are, for example.

The targeted surveillance of an individual, which involves the collection of personal data, is an infringement of what is called the “right to determine the use of one’s personal data”. That is why such measures must always be preceded by a very thorough and strict examination of whether the relevant requirements of the laws of the Federation and the federal states relating to their domestic intelligence services are fulfilled.

Confidential sources

Confidential sources are not staff members of the German domestic intelligence services but persons who usually belong to extremist groupings or to other groups monitored by our services. They normally receive a payment in return for supplying information that enables our services to shed light on the motives, plans and intentions of these circles of intelligence concern. The term “confidential sources” refers to the fact that those concerned have been promised confidentiality. “Source protection” serves to make sure that both the confidential sources’ identities and their connection with our services remain secret.

The very strict and narrow conditions for the use of confidential sources are also laid down in the laws of the Federation and the federal states relating to their domestic intelligence services.

Interception of mail and telecommunications

The Act to Restrict the Privacy of Correspondence, Posts and Telecommunications (G10 Act) allows the German domestic intelligence services to intercept and record telecommunications and to open and inspect items protected by the right to privacy of correspondence and posts in order to avert imminent danger to the free democratic basic order or to the existence or security of the Federation or of one of its federal states.

However, taking such measures necessarily requires prior approval by the competent body of the German Bundestag or of the parliament of the respective federal state, the G 10 Commission.

The conditions for taking measures under the G10 Act are very strict: for example, there must be indications of specific severe criminal offences (such as high treason, working as an agent for a foreign intelligence service or forming a terrorist organisation). Furthermore, the situation must be such that the use of another method to investigate the facts would be futile or render their investigation significantly more difficult.

Internet monitoring

As already indicated, analysts of the German domestic intelligence services systematically and continuously monitor and analyse relevant websites frequented by terrorists and militant extremists. Apart from that, the Internet is also used for covert information gathering, for example on social media. This, too, is legally admissible only under very strict conditions.