Massive criticism of Dobrindt's new edition of the "security package"

Federal Minister of the Interior Alexander Dobrindt (CSU) is facing increasing opposition to his draft bill to "strengthen digital investigative powers in police work". In an open letter on Friday, a broad alliance calls for this planned new edition of the "security package" to be stopped. The signatories, which include the SPD-affiliated net-political association D64, the Chaos Computer Club (CCC), Amnesty International and AlgorithmWatch, see the introduction of "mass biometric surveillance" and AI-supported "super databases" linked to this.

According to Dobrindt's leaked draft, the Federal Criminal Police Office (BKA), the Federal Police and the Federal Office for Migration and Refugees would be allowed to compare the biometric data of wanted individuals with the entire public internet, including social media. This is mass surveillance, the activists complain, as this would only be technically possible by creating huge facial databases of all people depicted online. The AI Regulation prohibits such practices. It would also have a deterrent effect on the exercise of fundamental rights, as people might be reluctant to share photos or videos online. Such far-reaching powers would also be disproportionate, as they would also affect unsuspicious citizens.

Dobrindt also wants to enable the federal police and BKA to automatically merge personal data from previously separate registers and process it further for analysis. The analysis by AI poses "considerable risks to fundamental and human rights". There is a threat of comprehensive profiling of individuals. Furthermore, the instruments are not limited to suspects, but also include "victims, witnesses and other persons who happen to be recorded in police databases".

Beyond the borderline of unconstitutionality

The NGOs are particularly concerned about the potential use of Palantir for big data analysis. The US company is closely linked to Trump supporter Peter Thiel. He makes no secret of his view that democracy is not compatible with freedom. Germany's digital sovereignty is at risk, as the company has access to police data and could potentially transfer it to the USA. The CCC emphasizes that it is happy to accept "Palantir software donations" for an analysis.

With the "insecurity package", the Minister of the Interior is planning measures "that are disproportionate to the supposed gain in security", the authors warn. The federal government must present laws "that do not constantly sail on the edge of unconstitutionality and European law – and even beyond – ". Oliver Süme, CEO of the industry association eco, had previously warned: "Full biometric registration on the internet is contrary to fundamental rights." The use of AI must remain clearly limited by law, transparent and controllable. A similar legislative package passed by the Bundestag in October during the "traffic light" era was stopped by the Bundesrat immediately. The initiative did not go far enough for the CDU/CSU parliamentary group.

(vbr)