A defence official has stated that the Ministry of Defence is currently investigating the potential security risks associated with Chinese cars, and personnel have been told to avoid talking about secret information in any vehicles.
Safety Advice for Defence Staff
During a recent interview on a radio station, Luke Pollard commented on reports that Ministry of Defence staff have been instructed not to discuss classified material while travelling in China-made cars.
He stated that the MoD is “investigating” cars from China within its vehicle pools, however noted that safety is a concern in every modern cars.
Our department has a fleet of thousands of vehicles in the MoD and those vehicles represent a very small number.
However regardless of if you’re traveling in a Chinese car or a non-Chinese car, our instruction to our staff is not to plug Ministry of Defence devices into their vehicle, to avoid having discussions at a classified classification in any kind of vehicle, due to the growing risks of eavesdropping that are present in all automobile, to only have those secret talks in secure locations. That’s a wise and sensible thing for anyone concerned about safety.
After it was put to him that it would be wise for the MoD to stop using all Chinese vehicles, the minister replied: That is precisely what we are looking into at the moment.”
Wider Security Context
This announcement comes as reports from Norway and Denmark have alerted the UK to the presence of dual-use kill switches in Chinese electric buses, which could enable China to switch off public transport and bring disruption to transport systems.
Additionally, a Russia intelligence vessel was reportedly shining laser beams at Royal Air Force aircrew, described as a “extremely risky” action by defence officials.
The wider defence situation underscores the importance of robust measures and vigilance in every aspects of official operations, including vehicle use to communication habits.
