An defence official has confirmed that the MoD is actively looking into the potential security risks posed by Chinese cars, while staff have been told to avoid talking about secret information in any vehicles.
Safety Guidance for Defence Personnel
In a recent appearance on LBC, a defence minister commented on reports that MoD officials have been instructed not to talk about secret material while riding in China-made cars.
The minister said that the MoD is “examining” cars from China within its fleets, however stressed that safety is a issue in all modern cars.
We have a fleet of tens of thousands of cars in the Ministry of Defence and Chinese ones represent a tiny fraction.
But whether you’re traveling in a Chinese car or a car from another country, what we’ve asked our staff is not to plug Ministry of Defence technology into their car, not to have conversations at a secret classification in any car, due to the increasing threats of eavesdropping that exist in all vehicle, to restrict those secret conversations in protected areas. This is a prudent and reasonable thing for anyone concerned about security.
When it was suggested that it would be wise for the MoD to stop using every cars from China, Pollard responded: ‘That’s exactly what we are looking into at the present time.”
Wider Defence Context
The revelation follows claims from Scandinavian countries have alerted the United Kingdom to the presence of multi-purpose shutdown mechanisms in Chinese electric buses, which could enable the Chinese government to switch off public transport and bring chaos to public transit.
Additionally, a Russia spy ship has been directing laser beams at RAF pilots, described as a “highly dangerous” action by government representatives.
The wider security situation highlights the significance of robust measures and caution in every aspects of government activities, including vehicle use to communication habits.
