A defence minister has stated that the MoD is currently investigating the possible threats posed by Chinese cars, and staff have been advised to avoid talking about secret matters in any cars.
Security Guidance for Defence Staff
During a recently aired interview on LBC, Luke Pollard addressed claims that MoD officials have been told not to discuss classified material while riding in Chinese vehicles.
He said that the MoD is “examining” cars from China within its vehicle pools, however stressed that security is a issue in every modern vehicles.
Our department has a collection of tens of thousands of cars in the Ministry of Defence and those vehicles account for a tiny fraction.
However regardless of if you’re traveling in a vehicle from China or a non-Chinese car, what we’ve asked our people is not to plug MoD technology into their vehicle, to avoid having conversations at a secret level in any kind of vehicle, because of the increasing risks of eavesdropping that exist in every single vehicle, to only have those secret conversations in secure locations. This is a wise and reasonable thing for everyone worried about safety.
After it was suggested that it would be wise for the MoD to stop using every Chinese vehicles, the minister replied: That is precisely what we are looking into at the moment.”
Broader Security Background
This announcement comes as claims from Norway and Denmark have warned the United Kingdom to the presence of dual-use kill switches in Chinese electric buses, which could enable the Chinese government to disable buses and cause disruption to transport systems.
Additionally, a Russia intelligence vessel was reportedly shining lasers at Royal Air Force aircrew, described as a “highly dangerous” act by government representatives.
The broader defence environment highlights the significance of robust measures and caution in every areas of official operations, from transport use to discussions practices.
