Germany’s “Transparency Act” Lets Regulators Search Media Offices and Platforms Without Warrants
A power shift from courts to bureaucrats.
Christina Maas
The German government has discovered a clever way to expand its surveillance powers: call it “transparency.” The federal cabinet has approved a bill that would let state agents enter media offices and digital platforms without needing a judge’s permission.
The official justification, ensuring honesty in political advertising, sounds harmless enough until you read the fine print and realize it’s about as transparent as a brick wall.
The “Political Advertising Transparency Act” is described as an effort to align with new EU rules on political ad disclosure.
What it actually does is grant the Bundesnetzagentur, a telecom regulator, search powers usually reserved for criminal investigators.
https://reclaimthenet.org/germany-political-ad-transparency-bill-press-surveillance
