Government Official States Ministry of Defence Looking at Security Risk from Chinese Cars, as Staff Instructed to Refrain from Secret Talk in Cars.
A defence minister has confirmed that the MoD is currently examining the possible threats associated with Chinese vehicles, while staff have been told to avoid talking about classified information in any vehicles.
Safety Advice for MoD Staff
During a recently aired interview on LBC, Luke Pollard addressed claims that MoD staff have been told not to discuss secret material while travelling in Chinese vehicles.
The minister explained that the ministry is “looking into” cars from China within its vehicle pools, however emphasised that security is a issue in all modern cars.
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 traveling in a Chinese car or a non-Chinese car, our instruction to our people is not to plug MoD devices into their vehicle, not to have discussions at a classified classification in any vehicle, because of the growing threats of eavesdropping that are present in every single vehicle, to only have those confidential conversations in protected areas. That’s a wise and reasonable thing for anyone concerned about security.
After it was put to him that it would be prudent for the MoD to stop using all Chinese vehicles, Pollard replied: ‘That’s precisely what we are looking into at the moment.”
Wider Defence Context
The announcement comes as claims from Norway and Denmark have alerted the UK to the presence of multi-purpose kill switches in Chinese electric buses, which could allow the Chinese government to disable buses and bring 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 wider defence environment highlights the importance of robust measures and caution in all aspects of official activities, from transport usage to discussions practices.
