On September 5, 2013, the 16 German state data protection authorities and the Federal Commissioner for Data Protection and Freedom of Information (the “DPAs”) passed a resolution concerning recent revelations about the PRISM, Tempora and XKeyscore surveillance programs.

The DPAs were critical of the programs, indicating that more should be done to understand their scope, especially since the programs raise serious constitutional concerns in Germany. In particular, it remains unclear whether German federal authorities illegally shared personal data with other countries or used illegally obtained personal data for their own purposes.

In the resolution, the DPAs advocate the following actions: