A defense official has confirmed that the MoD is actively looking into the potential threats associated with Chinese cars, while staff have been instructed to avoid talking about classified matters in any cars.
Security Guidance for MoD Personnel
In a recently aired interview on a radio station, a defence minister commented on reports that MoD officials have been told not to discuss classified information while riding in Chinese vehicles.
He explained that the MoD is “investigating” cars from China within its vehicle pools, however noted that safety is a issue in every contemporary cars.
Our department has a collection of thousands of vehicles in the MoD and those vehicles represent a tiny fraction.
But whether you’re driving a vehicle from China or a car from another country, what we’ve asked our people is not to plug MoD devices into their vehicle, not to have discussions at a classified level in any vehicle, because of the growing threats of eavesdropping that exist in all vehicle, to restrict those secret conversations in secure locations. This is a prudent and reasonable thing for anyone worried about security.
When it was suggested that it would be wise for the ministry to stop using every Chinese vehicles, Pollard replied: That is precisely what we are looking into at the present time.”
Wider Security Context
This revelation follows reports from Scandinavian countries have warned the UK to the presence of dual-use shutdown mechanisms in Chinese buses, which could enable the Chinese government to switch off buses and bring chaos to public transit.
Additionally, a Russian intelligence vessel was reportedly shining lasers at RAF pilots, labeled a “highly dangerous” action by defence officials.
This broader defence environment underscores the significance of robust measures and caution in all aspects of government activities, including transport use to communication habits.
