Espionage, security and countersabotage

Being informed on time and correctly is often decisive for success or failure in all areas of life. Getting correct information on time is important for states in their geo-strategic competition but also for competitors in global economy. This has remained unchanged even after the Cold War. Intelligence services provide such a lead in information.

Due to its geo-political location, its important role in EU and NATO and not least as a site for numerous high technology companies, the Federal Republic of Germany continues to be an important target for intelligence collection activities of some intelligence services of foreign states. Like in the past years, they include the intelligence and security services of the Russian Federation, the People's Republic of China, Iran, North Korea and some states of the Near and Middle East and Africa. The strength of these states' secret services in the respective diplomatic, consular or semi-official representations in Germany where they maintain their bases, the so-called legal residencies, varies a lot.

Not all members of these secret services cooperate with the German security agencies e.g. in the field of international counterterrorism. A considerable number of intelligence officers are involved in intelligence collection activities directed against German interests or abuse the German territory as an operational area for espionage activities against third countries. Such illegal activities of foreign secret services constitute an attack against the security interests of the Federal Republic of Germany. Counterintelligence is tasked with uncovering the modus operandi of foreign services and countering their espionage activities. This also includes the uncovering of illegal transactions or the release of expertise to be used for the proliferation of weapons of mass destruction.
It is no secret that some states that want to get hold of nuclear, biological or chemical weapons and the required technology have been trying to procure the required goods also in Germany.

Protective security has to ensure that information and procedures whose compromise might jeopardise the existence or vital interests, the security or interests of the Federation or one of its Federal States are kept secret and protected from unauthorised knowledge. In the framework of counter-sabotage, security-vetting of individuals - a reliable instrument of personnel security - in future is to prevent unreliable individuals from being employed in important positions of sensitive areas (facilities of vital or defence-related importance).