Security experts are warning that sensitive data held by the State Office for the Protection of the Constitution in Saxony-Anhalt could be misused or leaked, particularly in the event of a potential takeover by the AfD. Konstantin von Notz, a political figure from the Green party, told the “Tagesspiegel” that state constitution protection agencies possess numerous highly sensitive pieces of information. According to him, these include data that, if it fell into the hands of far-right extremists, would pose a massive threat to the integrity of the state, as well as to specific individuals.
Von Notz, who is also a member of the Parliamentary Control Committee overseeing Germany’s intelligence services, stressed that the future reliance of their partners will depend on whether these services can guarantee the confidentiality of the information. He called this a major security policy problem. Notz noted that the Greens have been demanding that the Federal Interior Minister address these issues for months, holding Alexander Dobrindt responsible for preventing these dangers. He expressed strong irritation that the intervention of the Ministry of the Interior has not been clearly visible yet. In response, the Greens have officially requested information from the federal government regarding what precautions the Federal Interior Ministry is taking to secure such data.
The Left party has also raised alarms about the outflow and potential abuse of this information. Clara Bünger, the interior policy spokeswoman for The Left, demanded in the “Tagesspiegel” that “everything must be done to prevent sensitive information from falling into the hands of people who wish to persecute political opponents.” While referencing the potential AfD government in Saxony-Anhalt, Bünger pointed out that this reflects a fundamental issue with the protection of the constitution. She criticized the agency for gathering data outside of democratic control and called for greater transparency and more control rights.
