German spies handed new powers to tackle ‘hybrid threats’ from abroad

Germany’s parliament has approved a major expansion of the powers of its foreign and domestic intelligence services, aimed at countering espionage, terrorism and sabotage. The government says the change responds to rising threats from abroad, while critics warn it weakens the separation between intelligence agencies and the police.

The BND foreign service will be able to carry out covert operations abroad, including sabotage, while the BfV domestic service can take protective action against property and IT systems when it identifies specific threats. Its new powers include disrupting data flows, altering maliciously stored information and, with prior authorisation, covertly entering homes; it can also monitor encrypted communications and use AI-assisted analysis. The bill passed by 309 votes to 190, with 71 abstentions.