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List of intelligence agencies of Germany

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The following is a list of intelligence agencies of Germany.

Currently active

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Besides that there are several other military and civilian agencies in Germany which do not have the status of an intelligence service, but have certain responsibilities similar to those of intelligence services or include close cooperation with German intelligence services:

  • Strategic Reconnaissance Command (KSA) (German: Kommando Strategische Aufklärung): central functional command for military intelligence, military signals intelligence and geospatial intelligence, part of Cyber and Information Domain Service. Subordinate units include Centre for Cyber Operations and Centre for Operational Communication (the latter being responsible for military Psychological Operations and Information Operations).
  • Central Office for Information Technology in the Security Sector (ZITiS) (German: Zentrale Stelle für Informationstechnik im Sicherheitsbereich): cryptanalysis and digital surveillance. Mainly works as a support and research agency for law enforcement and BfV.
  • Federal Office for Information Security (BSI): information security and cyber security.
  • Federal Criminal Police Office (BKA) (in German: Bundeskriminalamt): criminal and national security intelligence. Not actually an intelligence agency, but resembles one in a few aspects (the department State Protection (German: Staatsschutz) investigates police-relevant political extremism, terrorism and espionage; recently new departments for cyber crime and Islamist terrorism were created).
  • State Criminal Police Offices: State police services have their own police units responsible for State Protection. Further responsibilities for state protection may be distributed to regional police entities within the states.
  • Federal Police (BPOL) (in German: Bundespolizei): Federal (primarily) uniformed police service with responsibility for border, aviation and railway security ; one of its legal responsibilities is the support of the BfV on the field of radio technology, including signals intelligence to identify foreign intelligence services communication within Germany.
  • Customs Investigation Bureau (ZKA): investigation and analysis of certain financial crimes, cases of arms proliferation and drug trafficking. Central organizational entity for the regional branches of federal customs investigation service.
  • Financial Intelligence Unit (FIU). Central agency for the fight against money laundering and terrorist financing. Formerly and entity of the BKA and set up in 2017 as a subdirectorate of the ZKA until becoming a division of the General Customs Directorate 2021.

Former agencies

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Prussia/German Empire

Nazi Germany

West Germany

East Germany

See also

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