14 DAY TRIAL // The Chaos Computer Club (CCC) is one of the oldest hacker organizations in the world. The CCC has filed a criminal complaint against the German government and the leaders of the German intelligence agencies.
After teaming up with the International League for Human Rights, the two are accusing the government and three intelligence agencies in Germany of practicing prohibited covert intelligence activities, “aiding and abetting of those activities, of violation of the right to privacy and obstruction of justice in office by bearing and cooperating with the electronic surveillance of German citizens by NSA and GCHQ.”
“Every citizen is affected by the massive surveillance of their private communications. Our laws protect us and threatens those responsible for such surveillance with punishment. Therefore an investigation by the Federal Prosecutor General is necessary and mandatory by law – and a matter of course. It is unfortunate that those responsible and the circumstances of their crimes have not been investigated,” said Dr. Julius Mittenzwei, attorney and long-time member of the CCC.
Not only are the two organizations suing the German government, but they also want to bring in Edward Snowden to testify. There’s a catch, however, since Snowden can’t really leave Russia without getting arrested and sent off to the United States – they want him to be allowed to travel safely.
Snowden is currently in Russia, where he was offered temporary asylum after spending a month stranded in the transit area of the Sheremetyevo airport after the United States canceled his passport when he landed there. The whistleblower was supposed to board another plane and fly out to South America.
The lawsuit comes after months of reports coming from media organizations across the world, based on leaked NSA files coming from Edward Snowden, the whistleblower that the United States wants to get its hands on.