(1) If the offender in cases under sections 94 to 97 mistakenly assumes that a state secret is a secret of the kind indicated in section 97a he shall be punished pursuant to the those provisions if

1.  he could have avoided the mistake;

2.  he did not act with the intention of preventing the alleged violation; or

3.  the act is, under the circumstances, not an appropriate means to accomplish that purpose. The act is typically not an appropriate means if the offender did not previously seek a remedy from a member of the Federal Parliament.

(2) If the state secret was confided or made accessible to the offender in his capacity as a public official or soldier in the Armed Forces he shall also incur liability if he did not previously seek a remedy from a superior in government service, or in the case of a soldier from a superior disciplinary officer. This shall apply mutatis mutandis to persons entrusted with special public service functions and to persons under a duty within the meaning of section 353b(2).