Ministry of Defense : Warnings against spying attempts by fugitives

The Federal Ministry of Defense warns its employees that privately accommodated refugees from Ukraine could access security-relevant information.

Thousands of new refugees from the Ukraine come to Germany every day. More than 200,000 people are already there. In view of the war in Ukraine, the willingness to help is also great among the German population. Refugees often find accommodation in private apartments.

However, the Federal Ministry of Defense is also warning its employees of possible spying attempts and the leakage of sensitive information. This emerges from an internal letter with which employees in the division of the Ministry of Defense (BMVg) are to be made aware of the possible dangers of being too close to refugees.

Ukraine: “State with special security risks”

Despite the political support given to Ukraine by Western European governments, the Interior Ministry, which is responsible for this, considers the country to be a “state with special security risks”. “Accordingly,” the confidential ministry letter says WDR and NDR is available, “deeper relationships (including telephone calls, e-mail communication, interaction in social media) with Ukrainian nationals and with offices in Ukraine for members of the BMVg as part of the security screening procedure can come into play as security-relevant knowledge.”

“Priority reconnaissance target of foreign intelligence services”

The Federal Ministry of Defense continues to give its employees the freedom to “personally help Ukrainians who have fled the war, including donations of money and goods.” However, according to the security notice, “there must be knowledge that willingness to help in the course of humanitarian catastrophes can be exploited by security-endangering forces, such as criminals and foreign intelligence services, for their own purposes.”

Members of the Federal Ministry of Defense are a priority target for foreign intelligence services. Officially, the Federal Ministry of Defense did not want to comment on the events on request.

Help is still free

However, the letter shows that the security officers are particularly concerned that many employees are still working from home due to the corona pandemic. Refugees accommodated at home could access confidential and security-relevant information there – or overhear official telephone calls.

The Ministry also warns of possible dangers when participating in fundraising campaigns and the transmission of personal data to private aid organizations or associations. “It cannot, of course, be assumed that personal data is stored securely in accordance with legal data protection requirements and is only used for the intended purpose. It cannot therefore be ruled out that such information will leak out to security-endangering forces,” according to the ministry.

Too close could bring disadvantages

Department of Defense employees need a so-called security clearance to work with sensitive data. Being too close to security-relevant contacts could also result in disadvantages in a possible security check by the Bundeswehr. Deepened relationships with people and institutions from Ukraine as a “state with special security risks” could therefore grow into “adverse security-related knowledge,” the letter goes on to say.

The ministry also declined to comment on whether there had already been spying attempts since the start of the Ukraine war.