A defence official has revealed that the Ministry of Defence is actively investigating the possible threats posed by Chinese vehicles, while staff have been instructed to refrain from talking about secret matters in any vehicles.
Safety Advice for MoD Staff
In a recent interview on a radio station, a defence minister addressed claims that MoD officials have been instructed not to discuss classified information while travelling in China-made cars.
The minister explained that the MoD is “examining” Chinese vehicles within its vehicle pools, but emphasised that security is a concern in all contemporary cars.
Our department has a collection of tens of thousands of cars in the Ministry of Defence and Chinese ones represent a tiny fraction.
However regardless of if you’re traveling in a vehicle from China or a car from another country, our instruction to our people is not to plug MoD devices into their vehicle, not to have discussions at a classified level in any kind of car, due to the growing threats of eavesdropping that exist in all vehicle, to restrict those confidential conversations in secure locations. This is a prudent and reasonable thing for anyone concerned about safety.
After it was suggested that it would be wise for the MoD to stop using every cars from China, Pollard replied: That is exactly what we’re investigating at the present time.”
Broader Security Context
This announcement follows claims from Norway and Denmark have alerted the United Kingdom 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 public transit.
Additionally, a Russia intelligence vessel has been shining laser beams at Royal Air Force pilots, described as a “extremely risky” action by government representatives.
The broader security environment highlights the significance of robust measures and caution in all areas of government operations, from vehicle use to discussions practices.
