Telecommunications group

Telecommunications ; Group - Group F -
State level	Federation
legal form	Organizational unit in the BGS
Supervisory authority	Federal Ministry of the Interior
founding	April 1, 1955
Headquarters	Swisttal - Heimerzheim
Servants	500 (1994)

The Telecommunications Group (Group F) was an organizational unit of the Federal Border Police (BGS) from 1955 to 1996 for radio intelligence mainly in the context of counter-espionage for the Federal Office for the Protection of the Constitution (BfV).

tasks

Group F acted in the form of an organ and institute loan for the Federal Office for the Protection of the Constitution (BfV) to uncover radio links between agents of foreign intelligence services and anti-constitutional organizations and their efforts to establish radio links between the security authorities . It operated in the original area of responsibility for telecommunications reconnaissance of open radio traffic, in particular in the context of border security , and monitored the BGS's own radio traffic. Upon request, the group F supported by decision of the Federal Ministry of the Interior other necessary support of the federal and the countries / means of redress of task forces, namely:

the Federal Criminal Police Office in carrying out radio intelligence measures in the areas of counter-terrorism , police state security and organized crime ,
the Customs Criminal Police Office for radio surveillance and reconnaissance measures in the area of organized white-collar crime and
the federal states for radio surveillance and reconnaissance measures on the occasion of major and special police situations.

If Group F works for other consumers, the legal bases are based on their law. Group F did not perform any tasks for the Federal Intelligence Service , the Military Counter-Intelligence Service or other Bundeswehr agencies , the Federal Office for Information Security or foreign security authorities. She participated in measures to restrict the secrecy of telecommunications under Section 100a of the Code of Criminal Procedure and Article 10 of the Act . The requirement to separate the police and intelligence services was not affected by the organ lending, because the BfV did not ask Group F to take measures that the BfV itself was not authorized to take, and because the requirement to separate the police and intelligence services in fulfilling them their respective tasks.

The monitoring of radio traffic by group F was basically possible within the physical range of the radio waves. In the shortwave range , this could even be possible worldwide - provided that the corresponding requirements were met, especially on the transmission side and in the ionosphere . A satellite reconnaissance group F inoperable.

history

Group F was formed on April 1st, 1955 in Sankt Augustin - Hangelar . Previously had Gehlen Organization , the radio reconnaissance for counterintelligence operated. Group F was relocated to Swisttal - Heimerzheim in November 1975 and had other locations in Lübeck , Leer and Rosenheim . It was subordinate to the Border Guard Presidium West.

At least since 1972, Group F was also used for covert reconnaissance against the Red Army faction . In 1994 their mandate was enshrined in the Federal Border Guard Act. At that time, Group F consisted of about 450 civil servants and 50 clerks / workers.

On November 1, 1996, the telecommunications group was merged with the two parallel telecommunications services of the Federal Border Guard West, the command telecommunication unit and the IT support unit to form the Federal Border Guard Central Office for Information and Communication (BGSZSIUK) of the Federal Border Guard.

Supervision and control

The Federal Ministry of the Interior exercised the technical and legal supervision . Since the Telecommunications Group was not an official federal intelligence service , it was not subject to the control of the Parliamentary Control Commission (today: Parliamentary Control Committee ), but to general parliamentary control .

Web links

Federal Police - Central Office for Information and Communication of the Federal Police. Archived from the original ; accessed on December 16, 2018 .

Individual evidence

↑ ^a ^b ^c ^d ^e ^f Answer of the Federal Government to the small question of the MPs Ingrid Köppe and the group BÜNDNIS 90 / DIE GRÜNEN about the surveillance of radio and telecommunications by the Federal Border Police. (PDF) Printed matter 12/7020. In: www.bundestag.de. German Bundestag, April 15, 1994, accessed on December 16, 2018 .

↑ ^a ^b Manfred Bischoff: The area of radio observation / radio surveillance by the Federal Border Police (BGS) or the Federal Police (BPOL) of the Federal Republic of Germany is a specialty. In: www.manfred-bischoff.de. Manfred Bischoff, accessed December 16, 2018 .

↑ Erich Schmidt-Eenboom : Receptive to the secret - The (West) German intelligence services in the ether. (PDF) In: www.desert-info.ch. P. 2 , accessed December 16, 2018 .

^ The night of Stammheim - What did the secret services know? In: www.spiegel.de. Der SPIEGEL, September 8, 2007, accessed on December 16, 2018 .

↑ Federal - Secret Horch troops. In: www.spiegel.de. Der SPIEGEL, May 16, 1994, accessed on December 16, 2018 .

[Kleine_Anfrage-1] ↑ ^a ^b ^c ^d ^e ^f Answer of the Federal Government to the small question of the MPs Ingrid Köppe and the group BÜNDNIS 90 / DIE GRÜNEN about the surveillance of radio and telecommunications by the Federal Border Police. (PDF) Printed matter 12/7020. In: www.bundestag.de. German Bundestag, April 15, 1994, accessed on December 16, 2018 .