Intercantonal or Interagency Agreement on Data Exchange for the Operation of Situational and Analytical Systems in the Field of Serial Crime - Subject and Purpose

1. The agreement aims to efficiently combat serial crime by creating and operating inter-cantonal or inter-agency databases and enables inter-cantonal or inter-agency data exchange in this area.

2. The agreement serves the purpose of preventing and solving serial crimes and offenses and identifying the alleged perpetrators or suspicious persons. To this end, the parties to the agreement involved in each respective database (hereinafter referred to as participants) exchange police data in particular by means of joint databases according to Article 8 of this agreement.

3. The evaluations are used by the recipients for the creation of situational reports and investigative purposes.

4. The parties to the agreement may establish and operate joint databases corresponding to the purpose of the agreement and exchange or transfer data, including particularly sensitive data.

1. For each joint database under this agreement, a separate operational regulation shall be created. Each party to the agreement is free to participate in the joint database and data exchange by approving the operational regulation.

2. The provisions of this agreement are considered as principles and shall be specifically implemented for each joint database in its own operational regulation.

1. The Intercantonal Supervisory Authority exercises oversight over compliance with the present agreement.

2. It consists of one representative from each of the governments of the agreement partners or the politically responsible representative for the federal authority.

3. It regularly reports to the cantonal governments of the agreement partners or the respective competent federal authority. If provided by the law of an agreement partner, the report additionally includes an evaluation of the individual databases.

1. A steering committee shall be established, which shall constitute itself. Each agreement partner shall nominate the responsible person. The steering committee is particularly responsible for

a. the strategic management and implementation of this agreement;

b. the receipt of accession requests and terminations of this agreement;

c. the dispute resolution. For special cases, it may appoint an independent arbitral tribunal.

2. The steering committee shall issue the operating regulations in accordance with Article 7, whereby the determination of the distribution key according to Article 14 is exclusively reserved for the participants.

1. The operation of the respective database is ensured by a central agency, which may act as a licensee.

2. The central agency is supported in its operations by a branch office of each of the other participants.

3. The central agency and the branch offices are responsible for processing the data within their jurisdiction and the data received from third parties.

4. Each participant specifically designates the employees responsible for data exchange in the central agency and the branch offices and reports these to the central agency.

1. The responsibility for compliance with data protection and ensuring data security lies with the chief of police of the central office.

2. The central and external offices ensure that their data is lawful and accurate. Further details are governed by the operating regulations.

1. For each jointly operated database under this agreement, a corresponding operational regulation is to be issued. The operational regulation must be approved by all participants prior to joining a database.

2. Taking into account the principles defined in this agreement, the operational regulation for each database, in particular, stipulates the modalities regarding

a. Purpose and content of the respective database;

b. Access authorization to the respective database;

c. Guarantee of the legality and accuracy of the data;

d. The applicable distribution key according to Article 14;

e. Financial consequences of a participant's withdrawal from the database, as well as the distribution of any liquidation costs according to Article 16, paragraph 2;

f. Liability of the participants among each other in the internal relationship for damages from unlawful data processing or lack of due care;

g. Deletion of data pursuant to Articles 13 and 16.

1. Participants process exclusively data in the joint databases that have been lawfully collected and forwarded by municipal, cantonal, federal police authorities, or other partner organizations from within the country or abroad.

2. The following data may be processed in the databases

a. Information about the event and the location of the event;

b. Information regarding the modus operandi and means of the offense;

c. Information about known and unknown perpetrators and suspects: name, first name, date of birth, gender, alias names, nationality, physical description, images, identification numbers of official documents, passport or personal numbers, companies, phone numbers, addresses, IP addresses, URI, email addresses, further information regarding information and communication technologies used by them, name designations in social media and games (pseudonyms, etc.), registration and access data (including biometric data) for accounts and preferred modes of operation;

d. Information about affected natural and legal persons: name, first name, date of birth and gender or company and headquarters;

e. Information about the stolen goods;

f. Information regarding vehicles that could be connected with the event;

g. Information about case links between events (connections based on situations and material or electronic traces);

h. Event images;

i. Information from sources of information;

j. Process control numbers according to Article 8 paragraph 3 of the DNA Profile Act;

k. Information regarding means of payment and money flow;

l. Procedural data.

1. The participants are authorized to exchange the data listed under Article 8, Paragraph 2, in accordance with the principles of Article 8, Paragraph 1, store them in a central database, and evaluate them electronically.

2. The physical storage of the data is the sole responsibility of the respective central office.

1. Access to the respective database is exclusively granted to specially trained and designated personnel of the central and external offices in accordance with Article 5, Paragraph 4.

2. Other employees of the participants acquire knowledge of the database contents only indirectly, specifically in the form of notifications, evaluations, and reports, to fulfill their duties.

3. The central and external offices may modify only the data they have provided. They have read access to the data of other external offices as well as the central office.

4. The management of access rights is conducted by the central office.

1. Applicable law is that of the canton where the central office is located. This determines the jurisdiction of the data protection supervisory authority.

2. The legality of individual data collections is reserved. This is governed by the law of the authority that has recorded or caused the recording of the data.

1. The right to information, access, and rectification is governed by the Swiss Criminal Procedure Code and the data protection law of the canton where the central office is located.

2. The central office provides the information or initiates the rectification or deletion of the corresponding data after consulting with the authority that entered or caused the entry of the data.

3. Access may be restricted, deferred, or denied based on the restriction grounds of the cantonal law of the canton where the central office is located or based on restriction grounds provided under federal law.

1. The collected data shall be deleted in accordance with the following principles

a. The data records shall be deleted immediately, but no later than 10 years, once they are no longer necessary for processing.

b. The starting point for the time limit is the last data entry concerning the most recent recorded event.

c. Data concerning a person shall be deleted ex officio as soon as the suspicion of their involvement in offenses pursuant to Article 1 can be credibly cleared.

d. The time limit is suspended during the enforcement of a penalty, custodial measure, or civil law detention.

2. Data concerning injured parties shall be deleted or anonymized ex officio by the central office, independent of the time limits mentioned in paragraph 1, as soon as the purpose of processing allows it.

1. Each participant bears their own infrastructure and license costs.

2. The costs for the operation of the central and data protection supervisory body are shared among the participants. The applicable distribution key depends on the respective database. Possible distribution keys are conclusively

a. Proportional distribution analogous to Articles 11 and 12 of the Agreement between the Confederation and the Cantons on the Harmonization of Police Information Technology in Switzerland dated November 10, 2011,

b. Number of participants;

c. Permanent resident population of the participants;

d. Volume of data.

3. The distribution key under paragraph 2, letters c and d, can be supplemented with a base contribution, which covers a maximum of 40% of the total costs. This is distributed equally among the participants.

4. The respective operating regulations define the applicable distribution key. The central office provides the participants with an annual cost statement.

1. The operational regulations may be terminated at the end of a calendar year with a notice period of six months. The termination must be submitted in writing to the steering committee.

2. Upon the effectiveness of the termination, the former participant loses the right to use the joint database. Simultaneously, their obligation to pay costs pursuant to Article 14 ceases.

3. A refund for material and personnel expenses already incurred by the departing participant is generally excluded. Further details are governed by the respective operational regulations.

1. The data entered by the participant who is withdrawing will be deleted from the database, provided that such data is not related to an event recorded by another participant.

2. If a database is entirely dissolved, the data records will be deleted. Any liquidation costs are to be borne by the participants according to the distribution key specified in the operating regulations.

1. All cantons or suitable federal agencies may join the agreement at any time. The accession becomes effective immediately.

2. Any party to the agreement may terminate its membership by giving six months' notice to the end of a calendar year.

3. The application for accession and the termination must be submitted in writing to the steering committee.

1. The agreement shall enter into force as soon as at least two parties to the agreement have acceded to it and, if necessary, it has been published in their collection of laws.

2. Amendments to the agreement require the consent of all parties to the agreement.

1. The Steering Committee informs the Federal Chancellery about the present agreement. The procedure is governed by Article 270 of the Government and Administrative Organization Ordinance.

2. The Steering Committee informs the inter-cantonal supervisory body about the operating regulations issued based on the agreement, the joint databases, and any possible amendments.