Government Official States Ministry of Defence Investigating Security Risk from Chinese Cars, as Staff Instructed to Refrain from Confidential Discussions in Cars.
An defense minister has confirmed that the Ministry of Defence is currently investigating the potential threats posed by Chinese cars, and staff have been advised to refrain from talking about classified information in all vehicles.
Security Advice for MoD Personnel
In a recently aired interview on a radio station, Luke Pollard commented on reports that MoD officials have been told not to talk about secret material while riding in China-made vehicles.
He said that the ministry is “examining” cars from China within its vehicle pools, but stressed that safety is a concern in every modern vehicles.
We have a fleet 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 car from another country, our instruction to our staff is to avoid connecting Ministry of Defence technology into their car, to avoid having discussions at a classified level in any kind of vehicle, due to the increasing threats of eavesdropping that are present in all vehicle, to only have those secret conversations in protected areas. That’s a wise and sensible thing for anyone worried about safety.
When it was put to him that it would be wise for the ministry to stop using all cars from China, Pollard replied: That is exactly what we are looking into at the present time.”
Wider Security Context
The announcement follows claims from Scandinavian countries have alerted the UK to the presence of multi-purpose kill switches in Chinese-made electric buses, which could enable China to switch off buses and bring disruption to public transit.
Additionally, a Russian intelligence vessel has been shining lasers at RAF aircrew, described as a “highly dangerous” action by defence officials.
This broader defence environment underscores the significance of strong protocols and vigilance in all areas of government operations, from vehicle use to discussions practices.
