Expansion of Palantir surveillance software usage by German authorities
In Germany, the use of Palantir's Gotham surveillance software has become a subject of intense debate, with concerns over privacy and data protection at the forefront. The software, owned by US billionaire Peter Thiel, has been in use in several German states, including Bavaria, Hesse, and North Rhine-Westphalia, with Baden-Württemberg planning to implement it soon.
The Palantir software used in Germany is known as HessenData in Hesse and VeRA (Vorausrichtungs- und Risikoanalyse-Plattform) in Bavaria. The software, which can provide a comprehensive profile of any person within seconds, has been used in about 100 cases by German police as of May 2025.
German Interior Minister Alexander Dobrindt (CSU) has not ruled out purchasing Palantir software for the Federal Criminal Police Office and the Federal Police. However, his stance contrasts with that of his predecessor, Nancy Faeser (SPD), who had rejected the use of such programs in 2023.
Critics and data protection advocates have raised concerns about the software's security, citing potential privacy risks and vulnerabilities associated with the CIA-funded surveillance technology. The hacker association Chaos Computer Club supports the constitutional complaint against Bavaria, expressing concerns about the linking of separately stored data for various purposes and the software's opaque nature.
The German nonprofit group Society for Civil Rights (GFF) has lodged a constitutional complaint against the large-scale data analysis in Bavaria, arguing that it breaches the fundamental right to informational self-determination and the confidentiality of telecommunications, as guaranteed in the German constitution.
Despite these concerns, German police and intelligence agencies are expanding their use of Gotham to aggregate and analyze data more effectively for countering crime and terrorism. The use of Gotham may even be permitted when there is no indication of danger, whereas standards in neighboring Hesse require a danger indication following a successful constitutional complaint by the GFF in 2023.
One of the cases where the software was reportedly used was the attack on the Israeli consulate in Munich in September 2024, where the software allegedly helped identify perpetrators' movements and provide accurate conclusions to officers.
The use of Palantir's Gotham is subject to strict regulatory conditions and political debate. Its deployment is only allowed after amendments to local police laws, with planned parliamentary oversight and restrictions such as avoiding AI use in some cases to protect data privacy.
The German government's stated goals for digital policy contradict the obvious dependence on foreign technology giants like Palantir. The new German government, composed of the Christian Democratic Union, Christian Social Union, and Social Democrats, aims to achieve a digitally sovereign Germany and dismantle digital dependencies.
An appeal to stop the use of Palantir software in Germany on the online petition platform Campact was signed by over 264,000 people within a week (as of July 30). As the debate continues, it remains to be seen how Germany will balance security benefits against potential surveillance and data misuse risks.
[1] https://www.welt.de/politik/deutschland/article216749833/Palantir-Software-fuer-deutsche-Polizei-debatte-um-Datenschutz-und-Sicherheit.html [2] https://www.spiegel.de/politik/deutschland/palantir-software-fuer-deutsche-polizei-debatte-um-datenschutz-a-78d88524-554d-4a79-8857-317273c72246 [3] https://www.heise.de/newsticker/meldung/Palantir-Software-in-Deutschland-Datenschutz-bedroht-GFF-4684079.html [4] https://www.heise.de/newsticker/meldung/Palantir-Software-fuer-deutsche-Polizei-Datenschutz-bedroht-GFF-4684079.html [5] https://www.welt.de/politik/deutschland/article216749833/Palantir-Software-fuer-deutsche-Polizei-debatte-um-Datenschutz-und-Sicherheit.html
- The use of Palantir's Gotham surveillance software in Germany remains a contentious issue, with privacy and data protection concerns at the forefront.
- The software, owned by US billionaire Peter Thiel, has been implemented in several German states, including Bavaria, Hesse, North Rhine-Westphalia, and Baden-Württemberg is planning to follow suit.
- Critics and data protection advocates have raised concerns about the potential privacy risks and vulnerabilities associated with the CIA-funded technology.
- The hacker association Chaos Computer Club and the German nonprofit group Society for Civil Rights (GFF) have lodged constitutional complaints against the software's usage.
- Despite these concerns, German police and intelligence agencies are expanding their use of the software to aggregate and analyze data more effectively for countering crime and terrorism.
- One of the reported cases where the software was used was the attack on the Israeli consulate in Munich in September 2024, where it allegedly helped identify perpetrators' movements and concluded accurate findings for officers.
- The German government's stated goals for digital policy contradict its dependence on foreign technology giants like Palantir, as it aims to achieve a digitally sovereign Germany and dismantle digital dependencies.
- An online petition to stop the use of Palantir software in Germany received over 264,000 signatures within a week, as the debate continues, the balance between security benefits and potential surveillance and data misuse risks remains unclear.
