Minister States MoD Looking at Potential Threat from Chinese Cars, as Staff Told to Avoid Confidential Discussions in Cars.
An defense minister has confirmed that the Ministry of Defence is currently investigating the potential threats posed by Chinese cars, while personnel have been advised to refrain from talking about classified matters in any vehicles.
Security Advice for MoD Personnel
During a recently aired appearance on a radio station, a defence minister commented on claims that MoD officials have been told not to discuss classified information while riding in China-made vehicles.
The minister explained that the ministry is “investigating” cars from China within its fleets, however stressed that security is a concern in all modern cars.
We have a collection of thousands of vehicles in the Ministry of Defence and those vehicles account for a tiny fraction.
However whether you’re traveling in a Chinese car or a car from another country, our instruction to our staff is not to plug MoD technology into their vehicle, to avoid having conversations at a secret classification in any kind of car, due to the increasing risks of eavesdropping that are present in all automobile, to restrict those confidential conversations in protected areas. This is a prudent and reasonable thing for everyone worried about safety.
When it was put to him that it would be prudent for the ministry to cease using every cars from China, Pollard replied: ‘That’s precisely what we’re investigating at the present time.”
Wider Defence Context
This announcement follows claims from Scandinavian countries have alerted the UK to the presence of multi-purpose kill switches in Chinese electric buses, which could enable the Chinese government to disable public transport and bring chaos to public transit.
Furthermore, a Russia spy ship has been shining lasers at RAF aircrew, described as a “highly dangerous” act by defence officials.
The wider security environment highlights the importance of robust protocols and vigilance in all areas of official operations, including transport usage to discussions practices.
