An defence minister has revealed that the Ministry of Defence is currently investigating the possible threats posed by Chinese cars, and personnel have been told to refrain from talking about classified information in any vehicles.
Security Guidance for Defence Staff
In a recent interview on a radio station, Luke Pollard addressed claims that Ministry of Defence staff have been told not to discuss classified material while riding in Chinese cars.
He stated that the MoD is “looking into” Chinese vehicles within its vehicle pools, however noted that security is a concern in every contemporary vehicles.
We have a collection of thousands of vehicles in the MoD and those vehicles represent a very small number.
But regardless of if you’re driving a vehicle from China or a non-Chinese car, what we’ve asked our staff is not to plug Ministry of Defence technology into their car, to avoid having conversations at a classified level in any vehicle, due to the growing threats of eavesdropping that are present in all automobile, to only have those secret conversations in secure locations. That’s a prudent and sensible thing for anyone concerned about safety.
When it was suggested that it would be prudent for the MoD to cease using every cars from China, the minister responded: That is precisely what we’re investigating at the moment.”
Broader Security Background
The announcement comes as claims from Norway and Denmark have warned the UK to the presence of multi-purpose kill switches in Chinese buses, which could allow China to disable buses and bring disruption to public transit.
Additionally, a Russian spy ship was reportedly directing lasers at Royal Air Force aircrew, described as a “highly dangerous” act by defence officials.
The broader defence situation underscores the importance of strong protocols and caution in all aspects of official operations, from vehicle use to discussions habits.
