European hacker association Chaos Computer Club is suing the German government for allegedly breaking the law and aiding foreign intelligence agencies to spy on citizens.

The International League for Human Rights also added to the criminal complaint which accuses Chancellor Angela Merkel and her staff of violating the privacy of citizens by assisting the National Security Agency (NSA) and the Britain's GCHQ in “illegal and prohibited covert intelligence activities, along with aiding and abetting such activities,” according to a report by The New York Times.

Prior to filing this complaint, federal prosecutors had discussed whether to open an investigation into the NSA's activities.

The 32-year-old hacker collective is best known for campaigning for privacy rights and exposing vulnerabilities in systems and devices.