Ministerium für Staatssicherheit, - The Ministry of State Security or just the Stasi was the East German security and intelligence service. The Stasi dealt primarily with political crimes in the GDR. The Stasi had far more employees than the Nazi counterpart Gestapo during World War II, which was to cover not only all of Germany but also all of the occupied countries. It is estimated that in the GDR there were approx. 90,000 employees before the "fall of the wall". In the Gestapo there were approx. 32,000.

The Lives of Others - is an excellent film, but perhaps also a somewhat improbable one of its kind in terms of the primary action: A GDR agent transforms from a cynical faithful Stasi employee to a sensitive human man. If you have followed along, you will have noticed that not many station agents have regretted their misdeeds, but otherwise an absolutely worthwhile film.