A defense official has revealed that the MoD is actively examining the potential threats posed by Chinese-made cars, and staff have been instructed to avoid talking about classified information in all vehicles.
Security Advice for Defence Staff
During a recent interview on LBC, Luke Pollard addressed reports that Ministry of Defence officials have been instructed not to discuss classified information while travelling in China-made vehicles.
The minister stated that the ministry is “investigating” cars from China within its fleets, but emphasised that security is a issue in all contemporary vehicles.
Our department has a fleet of tens of thousands of vehicles in the Ministry of Defence and Chinese ones account for a very small number.
But regardless of if you’re driving a vehicle from China or a car from another country, what we’ve asked our people is to avoid connecting Ministry of Defence technology into their vehicle, not to have discussions at a secret classification in any vehicle, because of the increasing risks of eavesdropping that exist in all vehicle, to restrict those confidential conversations in secure locations. That’s a prudent and reasonable thing for everyone worried about security.
When it was suggested that it would be prudent for the MoD to stop using every Chinese vehicles, the minister responded: That is precisely what we’re investigating at the moment.”
Wider Security Context
The revelation follows claims from Scandinavian countries have alerted the UK to the existence of multi-purpose kill switches in Chinese-made electric buses, which could enable the Chinese government to switch off public transport and bring disruption to transport systems.
Additionally, a Russian spy ship was reportedly shining laser beams at Royal Air Force pilots, labeled a “extremely risky” act by government representatives.
This wider security environment underscores the importance of robust protocols and caution in all aspects of government activities, including transport usage to communication practices.
