A defence official has stated that the MoD is actively examining the possible security risks associated with Chinese-made cars, and staff have been told to avoid discussing classified information in all cars.
Security Advice for MoD Personnel
In a recently aired appearance on LBC, Luke Pollard commented on reports that Ministry of Defence officials have been instructed not to talk about classified material while travelling in China-made vehicles.
The minister explained that the MoD is “investigating” cars from China within its fleets, however noted that safety is a issue in all modern vehicles.
We have a collection of thousands of vehicles in the MoD and those vehicles account for a tiny fraction.
But regardless of if you’re driving a vehicle from China or a car from another country, our instruction to our people is not to plug MoD technology into their car, to avoid having conversations at a secret level in any car, due to the growing threats of eavesdropping that exist in every single vehicle, to restrict those secret talks in protected areas. That’s a wise and sensible thing for everyone concerned about security.
When it was suggested that it would be wise for the MoD to stop using all Chinese vehicles, the minister replied: ‘That’s exactly what we’re investigating at the present time.”
Wider Security Background
This announcement comes as reports from Norway and Denmark have alerted the United Kingdom to the existence of multi-purpose shutdown mechanisms in Chinese-made buses, which could enable the Chinese government to disable buses and cause chaos to public transit.
Additionally, a Russia spy ship has been directing lasers at RAF pilots, labeled a “extremely risky” act by defence officials.
This wider defence situation underscores the significance of strong protocols and vigilance in every areas of government activities, including vehicle usage to discussions practices.
