German Government Proposes Unprecedented Expansion of BND and BfV Intelligence Powers While Weakening Oversight

The German Interior Ministry, led by Alexander Dobrindt, published a 700-page draft law (Referentenentwurf) on July 5 to reform intelligence service law for the BND and BfV 123. The draft would let the BND conduct offensive cyber operations against foreign systems, exploit undisclosed zero-day vulnerabilities, and require the BSI to pass vulnerability findings to the BND before public disclosure 23. It would raise the cap on internet traffic the BND can divert for content analysis to 15 percent of total network capacity, permit facial recognition and real-time public tracking by both agencies, and grant the BfV new "protective measure" powers to intervene against threats without notifying affected individuals 12. The draft dissolves the G10 Commission and transfers its oversight functions, along with much of the Federal Data Protection Commissioner's current supervisory role over the services, to the Independent Oversight Council (UKRat), whose "administrative" review body would act only within periodic pre-approved audit programs 12. Projected costs run to roughly 40 million euros in one-time BND expenses and 269 million euros annually for BfV operations 23.