An defence minister has revealed that the MoD is actively looking into the possible threats posed by Chinese cars, and staff have been instructed to avoid talking about secret information in any cars.
Security Guidance for Defence Personnel
During a recently aired appearance on LBC, Luke Pollard addressed reports that MoD officials have been instructed not to talk about classified information while travelling in Chinese cars.
The minister explained that the MoD is “investigating” Chinese vehicles within its fleets, however emphasised that safety is a concern in all modern vehicles.
Our department has a collection of tens of thousands of cars in the MoD and those vehicles represent a very small number.
But regardless of if you’re driving a vehicle from China or a non-Chinese car, what we’ve asked our people is to avoid connecting MoD technology into their car, to avoid having conversations at a classified classification in any vehicle, because of the growing threats of eavesdropping that are present in all vehicle, to restrict those confidential conversations in protected areas. 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 cease using every Chinese vehicles, the minister replied: That is precisely what we are looking into at the present time.”
Wider Security Context
The revelation follows reports from Norway and Denmark have alerted the UK to the presence of multi-purpose kill switches in Chinese-made electric buses, which could enable the Chinese government to disable public transport and cause disruption to transport systems.
Additionally, a Russian spy ship has been directing laser beams at Royal Air Force aircrew, described as a “extremely risky” act by government representatives.
The broader defence environment highlights the significance of strong measures and vigilance in all aspects of government activities, including vehicle usage to discussions habits.