BERLIN: Germany is planning to fire Arne Schoenbohm (pix), the head of the BSI national cyber security agency, after reports he had contacts with Russian intelligence services, government sources told AFP on Monday.
The interior ministry said it is “taking reports seriously” and “investigating them comprehensively”.
Schoenbohm in 2012 co-founded a Berlin-based association known as the Cyber Security Council Germany, which advises businesses, government agencies and policymakers on cyber security issues.
That association is now under fire over alleged contacts to Russian secret services.
According to an investigation by a popular satire programme on the ZDF broadcaster, Schoenbohm still maintains contact with the association.
The Handelsblatt daily reported that there was “great annoyance” within the government over the allegations.
The interior ministry is “examining all options on how to deal with the situation”, it said.
The Cyber Security Council Germany denied the allegations in a statement on its website on Monday, calling them “absurd”.
Germany has in recent years repeatedly accused Russia of cyber espionage attempts.
The most high-profile incident blamed on Russian hackers to date was a cyberattack in 2015 that paralysed the computer network of the lower house of parliament, the Bundestag, forcing the entire institution offline for days while it was fixed.
Russia denies being behind such activities.
Tensions between Russia and Germany have only intensified since Moscow’s invasion of Ukraine.
The BSI has warned that companies, individuals and critical infrastructure are at risk of being hit by Russian cyberattacks.
The accusations against Schoenbohm came as German police were probing an act of “sabotage” on the country’s rail infrastructure, with some officials pointing the finger at Russia in the wake of the Nord Stream pipeline explosions.
Important communications cables were cut at two sites on Saturday, forcing rail services in the north to be halted for three hours and causing travel chaos for thousands of passengers.-AFP
