In accordance with Section 5 (1) No. 1 of the General Administrative Provision for the Material Protection of Classified Information (VSA), the Federal Office for Information Security (BSI) publishes Technical Guidelines (BSI TL--Technical Guideline) for the implementation of the VSA. Before publication, the BSI TL require the approval of the Federal Ministry of the Interior, Building and Community (BMI).

Therefore, the BSI TL are primarily intended for federal authorities and federal organisations under public law within the scope of the VSA. The currently valid version applies in each case. In exceptional cases and in agreement with the BSI, deviation from the BSI TL is permitted. In order to ensure uniform protection of classified information in Germany, the BSI TL, the VSA and further guidelines are of fundamental importance.

The currently valid version of the BSI TL is available on the BSI webpages and those of the affected, non-public agencies of the security forum at the Ministry for Economic Affairs and Energy for use by internal security consultants at the competent public agencies of the German federal, state and municipal governments. Access to these areas is granted on request to those persons for whom it is necessary for fulfilment of their responsibilities. The TL must not be shared further unless this is necessary for proper fulfilment of responsibilities.

The BSI TL specify the requirements of the VSA in concrete terms by defining methods for inspecting products, technical and organisational requirements and instructions in the field of material protection of classified information. The BSI TL are updated on a regular basis, taking account of state-of-the-art technology and the threat landscape.

If conformity with these requirements is obligatory, it must be assured by the certifications, certificates, approvals or technical audits of the BSI as required by this TL. On request, the BSI can also provide consulting services related to implementation of the BSI TL.

You can find the Technical Guidelines and additional information about them in the internal section of the security consulting webpage of the BSI.