Authority on crime investigation: Most incident reports to BKA are submitted by "Reliable Tipsters"

The Central Reporting Office for Criminal Content on the Internet (ZMI) at the Federal Criminal Police Office (BKA) has been at the forefront of combating online criminality since its establishment on February 1, 2022. Over the course of a year, from the beginning of 2024 to mid-2025, the ZMI received a total of 36,015 reports.

Of these reports, 30,873 were classified as relevant to criminal law, with 4,745 being sorted out. The majority of these reports came from three Trusted Flaggers: Respect!, Hessen against Hate, and state media authorities. Civil society organizations now play an increasingly important role in the ZMI's reporting process, with the status of a Trusted Flagger being awarded by the Federal Network Agency.

The ZMI focuses on digital violence, hate, and hate speech. Particularly many reports referred to crimes against persons in political life, such as insults, slander, and the use of symbols of unconstitutional and terrorist organizations. The phenomenon area of right-wing criminality saw 22,957 tips, while there were only 233 cases from the left-wing spectrum.

The highest hit rates were for reports on Facebook (94 percent), followed by X and Instagram (each 85 percent). The organization that provided the most tips to the ZMI from February 1, 2022, to mid-2025 is the BKA itself, where the ZMI was established.

In the first quarter of 2025, 4,682 reports came from trusted informants, compared to 504 from "other" sources. In the second quarter, 6,073 out of 6,241 reports were due to Trusted Flaggers, with Hessen against Hate providing the most reports (4,312).

The ZMI now provides monthly feedback to partners on the results of the initial criminal assessment, so they can improve their reporting practice. In 87 percent of the processed cases, the ZMI was able to determine a locally competent law enforcement authority in Germany or a possible location abroad.

The regulatory authority emphasizes the independence of Trusted Flaggers, stating they have special expertise and knowledge in recognizing and reporting illegal content. Platforms like TikTok, YouTube, Telegram, and others also contributed to the reports, with 2,798 tips referred to TikTok, 454 to YouTube, 792 to Telegram, and 3,255 to other platforms. WhatsApp is not considered separately.

Initially, politicians and the BKA expected around 250,000 reports annually from the previous Netzwerkdurchsetzungsgesetz reporting obligation, with 150,000 new criminal proceedings potentially resulting. However, the feared mass transfer of user data initially remained out.

The ZMI was established to centralize the recording, assessment, and forwarding of criminal content on the internet. Its integration of Trusted Flaggers directly into the reporting process has proven to be a successful strategy in the fight against online criminality.

Authority on crime investigation: Most incident reports to BKA are submitted by "Reliable Tipsters"