Bluetooth tracker - Minister: Close loopholes in the law on stalking
Using disk-shaped tracking devices as small as coins to follow people unnoticed via cell phone: This modern form of stalking already exists in Hesse. The state data protection commissioner Alexander Roßnagel told the German Press Agency in Wiesbaden that he had received "complaints in the low single-digit range in this area". Hesse's Minister of Justice Roman Poseck (CDU) spoke of "gaps in criminal liability" in the case of stalking with Bluetooth trackers.
The mini devices with small batteries are designed to locate lost suitcases or stolen cars with the help of many people's cell phones. Hidden in handbags, jackets or even cuddly toys, they can also be used to track ex-partners from a distance, often down to the meter - worldwide.
According to the Hessian Ministry of Justice, these "fortunately" rare cases have so far only been covered by criminal law if certain circumstances apply. For example, "the surveillance would have to be capable of significantly impairing the victim's lifestyle, which cannot simply be affirmed, at least in the case of covert surveillance".
Department head Poseck explained that at the Conference of Justice Ministers in Berlin on November 10, 2023, Hesse and other federal states spoke out in favor of closing these criminal liability loopholes: "Specifically, we are calling for these cases to be treated uniformly under criminal law without the need to prove success or a specific motivation on the part of the perpetrator. These acts are associated with a serious encroachment on fundamental rights, which can have serious consequences for those affected." Federal Minister of Justice Marco Buschmann (FDP) must initiate a legal regulation. "I will be monitoring this development," added Poseck.
Hesse's data protection commissioner Roßnagel also emphasized: "There is no doubt that the unnoticed spying on people's movement profiles using hidden Bluetooth trackers is a serious intrusion into their privacy." However, as long as the private sphere is not exceeded, for example by passing on the data obtained to third parties or by publishing it, the General Data Protection Regulation does not apply.
In view of the "possible consequences for the victim, the usually existing personal relationship between the perpetrator and the victim and presumably often related further criminal offenses, criminal prosecution seems more appropriate", Roßnagel found. In addition, the public prosecutor's offices have investigative powers "that are more efficient in such cases than the powers of the data protection authorities to uncover data protection violations, which are mostly committed by companies and authorities", added the law professor.
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Source: www.stern.de
