Germany’s foreign intelligence agency BND is sending vast amounts of phone and text information to the US National Security Agency (NSA) every month, despite claims claims of a ‘no-spy-deal’.
The staff of German Chancellor Angela Merkel have been accused of giving approval to the BND to help the NSA in spying onEuropean companies and officials.
Officials were also accused of lying about the plans of a no-spy agreement between the US and Germany before the 2013 election.
Citing confidential documents, the German newspaper Die Zeit Online reported that approximately 1.3 billion pieces of meta information will go to the NSA every month out of around 220 million pieces collected per day.
Raw material from phone calls and text messages with contact information, as well as times of activity, is being sent without consent.
Zeit Online said raw material on foreign communication in crisis regions is specifically sent.
Citing a BND official responsible for data protection, the newspaper said, "It is questionable as to whether this practice is covered by German laws."
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German intelligence sources said last week that the agency has now stopped its Internet surveillance for the NSA.
Earlier the disclosure by Edward Snowden, which claimed widespread US espionage in Germany, created a political storm in the country before election. The critics now accuse the political establishment of lying about the "no-spy deal" before the 2013 election.
