Last week's attacks in Brussels that killed at least 32 people have once again led to calls for better data sharing between European countries.
While the German government has been a strong supporter of this effort, many Germans remain reluctant to share their private data.
Ira Spitzer reports from Berlin.
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VO#1 Around 300,000 people pass through Berlin's central train station each day. Like the places targeted in Brussels and Paris before that , it could be considered a 'soft target'. Hoping to prevent tragedy on their soil, German officials have called for urgent improvements to intelligence sharing between European countries.
SOT, Rainer Wendt, Chairman, German Police Union
"It is not a good situation when every country guards its own information while twenty eight countries are under threat - namely the European Union is under threat - and that's why they have to react as a unified body.
VO#2 But privacy concerns, technical challenges and mistrust between security organizations have made that process difficult. And while Germany is asking for help from its neighbors, it has its own issues collecting data within its borders.
SOT, Rainer Wendt, Chairman, German Police Union
"I think people would be surprised if they knew how little the police know. Department stores… private service providers… gas stations know more than the police because people want their prepaid phone cards and release a lot of information."
VO#3The country has some of the strictest data privacy rules in the world, something many in law enforcement would like to change. There's a legacy of mass surveillance, not only in the former East Germany but also under the Nazis. For that reason and more, there's a deep distrust among many people here about sharing data they consider private."
VO#4 The Pirate Party, which holds fifteen seats in Berlin's state parliament, has made data privacy a key part of their platform and their local leader says it is good police work, not mass surveillance, that should be used to thwart an attack.
SOT, Bruno Kramm, Chairman, Pirate Party Berlin
"It is always so that attacks are used by governments in Europe to raise the level of surveillance and that's a big, big threat. and it doesn't help at all."
VO#5 After Brussels, many believe it is only a matter of time before Germany becomes a target. Measures like an EU air-passenger database and more access to phone records could help, but at what cost? Ira Spitzer, Berlin
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