"The scandal surrounding American surveillance is closing in on Angela Merkel," writes German news website Spiegel Online, adding that "the secret collaboration between the American NSA, the German secret service (BND) and the Federal Office to Protect the Constitution (BfV) is out of control".
Following accusations by German daily Bild, that the German army knew about Prism as early as 2011, Spiegel Online now reveals that the German secret services themselves used the XKeyscore surveillance programme, one of the NSA's most efficient spy systems, which is capable of recording complete unfiltered data for several days at a time, the website explains.
The president of the BfV, Hans-Georg Maassen, confirmed the use of the programme, which, says Der Spiegel shows to what extent collaboration between the German and US secret services has increased under Angela Merkel's administration.
Was this article useful? If so we are delighted!
It is freely available because we believe that the right to free and independent information is essential for democracy. But this right is not guaranteed forever, and independence comes at a cost. We need your support in order to continue publishing independent, multilingual news for all Europeans.
Discover our subscription offers and their exclusive benefits and become a member of our community now!