German Interior Ministry Approves Launch of State Spyware Program

The German Interior Ministry has approved the deployment of the state-sponsored trojan program FinSpy, which enables authorities to bypass encryption and intercept messages in popular messaging apps. According to Die Welt, German law enforcement agencies will now be able to monitor encrypted communications on mobile devices using messengers such as WhatsApp, Telegram, or Signal.

The police hope that this tool will increase their effectiveness in identifying individuals suspected of terrorist activities, drug trafficking, and tax evasion. To utilize the program’s capabilities, police officers must first install the trojan on the target device.

The German government purchased the commercial version of FinSpy (developed by the Munich-based company FinFisher) back in 2013, but had not used the software due to legal reasons. According to Die Welt, on January 10, 2018, the Interior Ministry gave the green light for the Federal Criminal Police Office to use the program.

Upcoming Legislation on Device Backdoors

It was previously reported that the German government is preparing a bill that would require equipment manufacturers to implement backdoors in their devices, which could be used by law enforcement agencies during investigations. The proposed law is expected to apply to all types of modern devices, including cars, phones, computers, and Internet of Things (IoT) devices.