Germany's Cabinet Backs Offensive Cyber Powers for Intelligence Agencies

Germany's cabinet approved a 700-page draft law on August 12, 2026, granting its BND and BfV intelligence agencies offensive cyber capabilities — including "hack-back" operations to infiltrate adversaries' networks — and authority to sabotage weapons production. Interior minister Alexander Dobrindt called the reform a security "revolution." The bill still needs parliamentary approval. It follows a deadly car ramming at Berlin's Pride parade and an explosives-laden drone found at Leipzig airport.