The Act on Restrictions on the Secrecy of Mail, Post and Telecommunications, ''Gesetz zur Beschränkung des Brief-, Post- und Fernmeldegeheimnisses'' in German, also known as the G-10 Act, is a
German federal law that regulates the surveillance powers of Germany's intelligence agencies.
The shortened and more commonly used name, ‘G-10’, refers to Article 10 of the
German Basic Law
The Basic Law for the Federal Republic of Germany (german: Grundgesetz für die Bundesrepublik Deutschland) is the constitution of the Federal Republic of Germany.
The West German Constitution was approved in Bonn on 8 May 1949 and came in ...
, which enshrines the
right to privacy
The right to privacy is an element of various legal traditions that intends to restrain governmental and private actions that threaten the privacy of individuals. Over 150 national constitutions mention the right to privacy. On 10 December 194 ...
of
communication
Communication (from la, communicare, meaning "to share" or "to be in relation with") is usually defined as the transmission of information. The term may also refer to the message communicated through such transmissions or the field of inqui ...
: It is from these provisions that the law seeks to
derogate
Derogation, in Civil law (legal system), civil law and common law, is the partial suppression of a law. In contrast, annulment is the total abolition of a law by explicit repeal, and obrogation is the partial or total modification or repeal of a la ...
.
It is similar to Britain's
Regulation of Investigatory Powers Act 2000
The Regulation of Investigatory Powers Act 2000 ( c.23) (RIP or RIPA) is an Act of the Parliament of the United Kingdom, regulating the powers of public bodies to carry out surveillance and investigation, and covering the interception of comm ...
and is comparable to the
Foreign Intelligence Surveillance Act of the United States.
Although the G-10 Act imposes nominal restrictions on the ability of
Germany's intelligence agencies to spy on private communications, the law also allows warrantless automated wiretaps of domestic and international communications to prevent terrorist attacks and to maintain national security.
See also
*
Bill on Intelligence
*
Draft Investigatory Powers Bill
References
{{DEFAULTSORT:Gesetz zur Beschrankung des Brief-, Post- und Fernmeldegeheimnisses
Law enforcement in Germany
Mass surveillance