German politicians' phone numbers exposed in data leak
The mobile numbers of Germany’s most senior politicians and military leaders, including Friedrich Merz, have been discovered online.
An Italian cybersecurity expert told Spiegel he initially found the leak among Italian politicians before checking with their foreign counterparts. Access to the personal details of leading German politicians can be obtained in just a few clicks, according to DW.
Andrea Mavilla demonstrated the process to Spiegel journalists. The expert uses specialised browser extensions from "data brokers"—firms that gather and sell personal information, often for advertising. He said a monthly subscription costs €30. A LinkedIn extension allows for the direct viewing of phone numbers, including those of German politicians. There are countless data brokers, with four of them holding particularly large databases. Mavilla showed the journalists Mr Merz's number, which they confirmed as authentic.
In Germany, several agencies are responsible for data security, including the Federal Office for Information Security (BSI). The numbers of BSI head Claudia Plattner were also found with the brokers—both her work and private numbers. When asked by Spiegel, the BSI said it was sharing information with the Federal Criminal Police Office, ministers and those affected, while “carefully” analysing potential future measures. The agency stressed that no cases of data misuse have been identified so far.
However, the risks are high. If someone were to jokingly call Mr Merz or bombard him with spam, the chancellor would get off lightly, Mavilla said. But the consequences could be far more serious—ranging from account hacking and surveillance to malware infection.
“What I am showing here is a huge, underestimated security problem,” said Mr Mavilla. “It is unacceptable that these companies trade in data without the knowledge of those involved.”
The expert even attempted to contact Mr Merz and several federal agencies to report the problem, but was unsuccessful.
DW reports that the German Chancellor's press service said it "does not, as a matter of principle, comment on the communication methods of the federal chancellor for security reasons."
Translation by Iurie Tataru
