German Bundestag Passes Whistleblower Protection Act

New: Anonymous reporting must be made possible

In its last session of the year today, the Bundestag passed the German Whistleblower Protection Act, thereby transposing the EU Whistleblowing Directive (EU Directive 2019/1937). From the point of view of EQS Group, the market leader for digital whistleblowing systems in Europe, it is particularly pleasing that the protection of whistleblowers has been improved once again with regards to anonymous reports: Reporting channels must now accommodate anonymous tips or allow arrangements to enable anonymous communication with reporting persons.

Germany is the 14th EU member state to transpose the EU Whistleblowing Directive into national law, after Belgium and Italy also took this step last week: “We have been preparing intensively for the introduction of a whistleblower protection law for three years. We are very pleased that anonymous reports must now also be made possible. Although this also increases the requirements for companies, these can be fulfilled legally and reliably with our market-leading software”, says Achim Weick, founder and CEO of EQS Group.

Companies, authorities and municipalities must set up reporting channels

For the 17,000 companies in Germany with 250 or more employees, but also public institutions and municipalities with 10,000 or more inhabitants, there is an urgent need to set up a reporting channel. Digital whistleblowing systems have established themselves as best practice in this area, as only these fulfil all requirements for secure, anonymous and GDPR-compliant communication. These tools can be set up in several languages as recommended by the legislator, especially for international groups. They also automate the prescribed processes for confirming receipt of reports and providing feedback to the whistleblower.

Contact:

André Marques, CFO

Tel.: 33
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