A defence official has confirmed that the Ministry of Defence is actively looking into the potential threats posed by Chinese-made cars, while staff have been advised to refrain from discussing secret information in all cars.
Safety Advice for MoD Personnel
During a recent appearance on LBC, a defence minister commented on claims that Ministry of Defence officials have been told not to talk about secret material while riding in China-made vehicles.
The minister stated that the ministry is “looking into” cars from China within its fleets, but stressed that security is a concern in every modern cars.
We have a collection of thousands of cars in the MoD and those vehicles represent a tiny fraction.
But whether you’re traveling in a Chinese car or a non-Chinese car, what we’ve asked our people is not to plug MoD technology into their car, not to have conversations at a classified level in any kind of car, because of the increasing threats of surveillance that are present in every single automobile, to only have those confidential talks in secure locations. That’s a prudent and sensible thing for anyone concerned about security.
After it was suggested that it would be wise for the ministry to cease using every Chinese vehicles, Pollard replied: That is precisely what we are looking into at the moment.”
Broader Security Context
This announcement comes as reports from Norway and Denmark have alerted the United Kingdom to the presence of multi-purpose kill switches in Chinese-made electric buses, which could allow the Chinese government to switch off public transport and bring disruption to transport systems.
Additionally, a Russia spy ship has been directing laser beams at Royal Air Force pilots, described as a “highly dangerous” action by defence officials.
This wider defence environment underscores the significance of robust measures and caution in all aspects of government activities, including vehicle usage to discussions habits.
