A defence official has confirmed that the Ministry of Defence is actively examining the potential security risks posed by Chinese-made vehicles, and personnel have been advised to refrain from talking about classified matters in all cars.
Security Guidance for MoD Personnel
In a recent appearance on LBC, Luke Pollard commented on claims that MoD staff have been told not to talk about secret information while riding in China-made cars.
He stated that the MoD is “examining” Chinese vehicles within its fleets, but emphasised that safety is a concern in all modern vehicles.
We have a collection of tens of thousands of cars in the MoD and those vehicles account for a very small number.
However regardless of if you’re driving a Chinese car or a non-Chinese car, our instruction to our staff is to avoid connecting MoD technology into their car, to avoid having discussions at a classified level in any vehicle, because of the growing threats of eavesdropping that are present in all automobile, to restrict those confidential talks in protected areas. That’s a prudent and sensible thing for everyone concerned about safety.
After it was suggested that it would be prudent for the MoD to cease using all Chinese vehicles, Pollard replied: ‘That’s precisely what we are looking into at the moment.”
Wider Security Background
The announcement follows reports from Scandinavian countries have warned the UK to the existence of dual-use kill switches in Chinese-made buses, which could allow China to disable buses and cause chaos to transport systems.
Furthermore, a Russia spy ship was reportedly directing laser beams at Royal Air Force aircrew, labeled a “extremely risky” act by defence officials.
The wider security situation underscores the significance of strong measures and caution in all areas of government operations, from vehicle usage to communication practices.
