An defence minister has confirmed that the MoD is actively examining the possible security risks associated with Chinese cars, and staff have been advised to avoid discussing secret information in all cars.
Safety Guidance for Defence Staff
During a recently aired appearance on a radio station, Luke Pollard addressed reports that MoD staff have been told not to talk about classified material while travelling in Chinese vehicles.
The minister explained that the MoD is “looking into” cars from China within its fleets, but stressed that safety is a issue in every contemporary vehicles.
We have a collection of thousands of cars in the Ministry of Defence and Chinese ones represent a tiny fraction.
However whether you’re traveling in a Chinese car or a non-Chinese car, our instruction to our staff is to avoid connecting MoD devices into their vehicle, to avoid having conversations at a classified level in any kind of vehicle, due to the increasing risks of eavesdropping that exist in every single automobile, to only have those secret talks in protected areas. That’s a wise and reasonable thing for anyone concerned about security.
When it was put to him that it would be prudent for the ministry to cease using every cars from China, the minister responded: That is exactly what we’re investigating at the present time.”
Wider Defence Background
This revelation comes as reports from Norway and Denmark have warned the United Kingdom to the presence of multi-purpose kill switches in Chinese electric buses, which could enable China to disable public transport and cause disruption to transport systems.
Furthermore, a Russia spy ship was reportedly shining laser beams at Royal Air Force pilots, described as a “extremely risky” action by defence officials.
The wider defence environment underscores the importance of robust protocols and caution in all areas of official operations, from transport use to communication habits.
