An defence official has revealed that the Ministry of Defence is currently investigating the possible threats associated with Chinese cars, and personnel have been instructed to refrain from talking about secret information in any vehicles.
Safety Advice for MoD Staff
In a recently aired interview on a radio station, Luke Pollard commented on reports that MoD staff have been told not to discuss classified material while travelling in Chinese vehicles.
The minister said that the MoD is “looking into” cars from China within its vehicle pools, but emphasised that security is a issue in all modern vehicles.
Our department has a collection of tens of thousands of vehicles in the MoD and Chinese ones account for a tiny fraction.
However regardless of if you’re driving a Chinese car or a non-Chinese car, what we’ve asked our people is not to plug MoD devices into their vehicle, to avoid having conversations at a classified classification in any vehicle, because of the growing risks of eavesdropping that are present in every single automobile, to restrict those confidential conversations in secure locations. That’s 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 all Chinese vehicles, Pollard replied: That is exactly what we are looking into at the moment.”
Broader Security Background
This announcement follows reports from Norway and Denmark have alerted the UK to the existence of dual-use shutdown mechanisms in Chinese buses, which could allow China to switch off buses and cause chaos to public transit.
Furthermore, a Russia spy ship was reportedly directing lasers at RAF aircrew, described as a “extremely risky” action by government representatives.
This wider security situation highlights the importance of robust measures and vigilance in every areas of official operations, including vehicle use to discussions practices.
