An defence official has confirmed that the Ministry of Defence is currently examining the potential security risks associated with Chinese-made cars, and staff have been instructed to avoid discussing secret information in any vehicles.
Safety Advice for MoD Staff
During a recently aired appearance on a radio station, a defence minister addressed claims that Ministry of Defence staff have been told not to talk about classified information while riding in China-made cars.
He stated that the ministry is “looking into” Chinese vehicles within its vehicle pools, however emphasised that safety is a concern in all modern cars.
We have a fleet of tens of thousands of cars in the Ministry of Defence and Chinese ones account for a very small number.
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 vehicle, to avoid having conversations at a secret classification in any kind of car, due to the increasing threats of eavesdropping that exist in every single vehicle, to only have those secret talks in protected areas. That’s a wise and reasonable thing for everyone worried about safety.
After it was put to him that it would be wise for the ministry to cease using every cars from China, Pollard responded: That is exactly what we’re investigating at the moment.”
Broader Defence Background
The revelation 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 disable public transport and bring disruption to public transit.
Furthermore, a Russian spy ship was reportedly shining lasers at Royal Air Force pilots, labeled a “highly dangerous” act by government representatives.
The wider defence situation highlights the importance of strong protocols and vigilance in all areas of government operations, including transport usage to communication habits.
