A defense official has confirmed that the MoD is currently looking into the potential security risks posed by Chinese cars, and staff have been told to avoid talking about classified matters in all vehicles.
Security Advice for MoD Personnel
During a recently aired appearance on LBC, a defence minister addressed reports that MoD staff have been instructed not to talk about classified information while travelling in Chinese cars.
The minister said that the ministry is “examining” Chinese vehicles within its vehicle pools, however emphasised that security is a concern in all modern cars.
We have a collection of tens of thousands of cars in the Ministry of Defence and Chinese ones represent a tiny fraction.
However regardless of if you’re traveling in a vehicle from China or a car from another country, our instruction to our people is not to plug Ministry of Defence technology into their vehicle, to avoid having conversations at a secret level in any kind of vehicle, because of the increasing threats of surveillance that exist in all vehicle, to only have those secret conversations in protected areas. That’s a prudent and reasonable thing for anyone concerned about safety.
After it was put to him that it would be prudent for the MoD to cease using every cars from China, Pollard responded: ‘That’s exactly what we’re investigating at the present time.”
Broader Security Context
The announcement comes as claims from Norway and Denmark have warned the United Kingdom to the existence of dual-use kill switches in Chinese buses, which could allow the Chinese government to disable buses and cause disruption to transport systems.
Furthermore, a Russian intelligence vessel has been shining laser beams at Royal Air Force aircrew, labeled a “extremely risky” act by defence officials.
This wider defence situation underscores the significance of robust measures and vigilance in every aspects of government activities, from transport usage to communication practices.
