An defense minister has confirmed that the MoD is currently investigating the possible security risks posed by Chinese-made cars, while staff have been told to avoid talking about secret information in all vehicles.
Security Advice for Defence Personnel
In a recent interview on LBC, Luke Pollard commented on reports that MoD officials have been told not to discuss secret information while travelling in Chinese cars.
He stated that the ministry is “investigating” Chinese vehicles within its fleets, but noted that safety is a issue in every contemporary cars.
We have a fleet of thousands of cars in the Ministry of Defence and Chinese ones account for a tiny fraction.
But whether you’re traveling in a Chinese car or a non-Chinese car, our instruction to our staff is not to plug MoD technology into their car, not to have conversations at a secret classification in any kind of car, due to the growing risks of eavesdropping that are present in every single vehicle, to restrict those confidential talks in protected areas. That’s a prudent and reasonable thing for everyone worried about safety.
After it was suggested that it would be prudent for the ministry to cease using every cars from China, Pollard replied: ‘That’s precisely what we are looking into at the moment.”
Broader Defence Context
This announcement follows reports from Scandinavian countries have warned the UK to the presence of multi-purpose kill switches in Chinese-made buses, which could allow China to disable public transport and bring chaos to transport systems.
Additionally, a Russia intelligence vessel has been directing laser beams at RAF aircrew, described as a “highly dangerous” action by government representatives.
The broader security environment highlights the importance of strong measures and vigilance in every areas of official activities, including vehicle usage to discussions practices.
