A defense minister has revealed that the MoD is actively investigating the possible security risks posed by Chinese-made cars, and staff have been advised to avoid discussing classified information in all cars.
Security Advice for MoD Staff
During a recent interview on a radio station, Luke Pollard addressed reports that MoD staff have been told not to talk about secret information while travelling in Chinese cars.
He said that the MoD is “looking into” cars from China within its fleets, but emphasised that safety is a concern in every contemporary cars.
We have a collection of tens of thousands of vehicles in the MoD and Chinese ones represent a tiny fraction.
However regardless of if you’re driving a vehicle from China or a car from another country, what we’ve asked our staff is to avoid connecting MoD devices into their car, not to have conversations at a secret level in any car, because of the growing threats of eavesdropping that exist in all vehicle, to restrict those confidential conversations in secure locations. This is a prudent and sensible thing for everyone worried about security.
After it was put to him that it would be wise for the MoD to cease using all cars from China, the minister replied: ‘That’s exactly what we are looking into at the present time.”
Broader Security Context
This announcement follows reports from Scandinavian countries have alerted the UK to the presence of multi-purpose kill switches in Chinese-made buses, which could enable China to disable buses and bring disruption to transport systems.
Additionally, a Russia spy ship has been directing laser beams at RAF pilots, labeled a “highly dangerous” act by defence officials.
The wider security situation underscores the importance of strong protocols and caution in all aspects of government activities, including transport usage to discussions habits.
