Der Spiegel: Moscow is trying to recruit Germans visiting Russia as informants

The Der Spiegel in his publication he states that Moscow has been trying to recruit them lately Germans who visit her Russiaaiming to use them as whistleblowers.

In particular, the Russian service of DW reported that there has been an increase in the number of cases in which the Russian intelligence services try to recruit German citizens visiting Russia, according to the weekly German magazine Der Spiegel, which has a detailed report at its disposal. internal use report her Federal Office for the Protection of the Constitution (Bundesamt für Verfassungsschutz, BfV).

In the report, it is stated that the collaborators of the diplomatic missions of Germany can be targeted by the Russian secret services. However, potential targets may also be those traveling individually, either for business reasons, BfV considers. The BfV predicts that Russian agents will then “recruit” German citizens, possibly using “harder and more cynical ways” to bend them to cooperate. For that reason they may use blackmail itemsor to create situations through which pressure will be exerted on them

Germany’s foreign ministry directly warns those who are going to visit Russia not to use social media. “Critical views on current political events” can “result in unforeseen personal risks,” the German foreign ministry said. In Moscow, police have already carried out checks on the mobile phones of people of interest to the secret services, which are studying what they write on messaging apps and social media.