Government Official Says MoD Examining Potential Threat from Chinese Cars, with Personnel Told to Refrain from Secret Talk in Cars.
An defence minister has stated that the Ministry of Defence is currently investigating the possible threats posed by Chinese-made vehicles, while staff have been instructed to avoid discussing secret information in all cars.
Safety Guidance for Defence Staff
During a recently aired interview on a radio station, a defence minister commented on reports that Ministry of Defence staff have been told not to discuss classified material while riding in China-made vehicles.
He explained that the MoD is “looking into” Chinese vehicles within its vehicle pools, however emphasised that safety is a issue in all modern vehicles.
We have a fleet of thousands of cars in the Ministry of Defence and Chinese ones represent a very small number.
But regardless of if you’re driving a vehicle from China or a car from another country, our instruction to our staff is to avoid connecting MoD devices into their vehicle, to avoid having conversations at a secret level in any kind of car, due to the increasing risks of eavesdropping that exist in every single automobile, to only have those secret conversations in secure locations. This is a prudent and reasonable thing for anyone concerned about security.
After it was suggested that it would be wise for the ministry to cease using every cars from China, Pollard replied: That is precisely what we are looking into at the present time.”
Broader Security Context
This announcement follows claims from Norway and Denmark have alerted the United Kingdom to the existence of dual-use shutdown mechanisms in Chinese electric buses, which could allow China to disable public transport and cause disruption to public transit.
Additionally, a Russian intelligence vessel has been directing lasers at Royal Air Force aircrew, described as a “highly dangerous” action by defence officials.
This wider defence situation underscores the importance of robust measures and vigilance in all areas of government operations, including vehicle use to communication practices.