An defense minister has stated that the MoD is currently investigating the potential security risks posed by Chinese-made cars, and personnel have been told to refrain from talking about classified information in any vehicles.
Security Guidance for MoD Personnel
During a recent appearance on LBC, Luke Pollard addressed claims that Ministry of Defence staff have been told not to talk about secret material while travelling in China-made vehicles.
He stated that the ministry is “looking into” cars from China within its vehicle pools, but noted that security is a concern in every contemporary vehicles.
We have a collection of thousands of vehicles in the MoD and Chinese ones represent a very small number.
But whether you’re driving a vehicle from China or a non-Chinese car, our instruction to our staff is not to plug MoD technology into their car, not to have discussions at a secret level in any car, because of the growing risks of eavesdropping that exist in every single vehicle, to only have those secret talks in secure locations. This is a wise and sensible thing for everyone concerned about security.
When it was suggested that it would be prudent for the MoD to stop using every cars from China, Pollard responded: That is precisely what we’re investigating at the moment.”
Broader Security Context
The announcement comes as reports from Scandinavian countries have alerted the United Kingdom to the presence of multi-purpose kill switches in Chinese electric buses, which could allow the Chinese government to disable buses and bring chaos to public transit.
Additionally, a Russia spy ship has been directing laser beams at Royal Air Force aircrew, labeled a “highly dangerous” act by defence officials.
The wider defence environment highlights the significance of strong measures and vigilance in every areas of government operations, including transport use to discussions practices.
